Love is a Battlefield
by PEANUT v1.2
Summary: Tifa is running from something, but she has no idea what. She had abandoned her friends in search of it, but now that she's with them again, will things improve or blow up completely? Rated T for some highly dramtic moments and action.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Running**

_Where am I?_

What am I doing here?

What's going on?

The questions flooded the girl's mind, and unfortunately for her, they went unanswered. She desperately wished she knew the truth of what was going on here, but only minor, unimportant details came to mind. And they didn't even really answer any questions that were nagging her.

_My name is Tifa Lockhart, and I'm lying here on some God-forsaken cot. Everything around me is silent, and even though my closed eyes, I can tell that there is some kind of faint light in this place. But what is this place? Why am I here? _

"--stable now; the first time in days."

Tifa started at the voice, unaware that anybody was with her. She hardly understood what the words meant, and she desperately wished somebody would make things more clear. The young woman furrowed her brows slightly, trying to force her closed eyes to open. But at the first moment she did, a great pain shot through her head. Without thought, she whimpered softly, unable to keep her pain hidden. A moment afterwards, things were still silent. Hadn't anybody heard her whimper? If they did, they were being quite rude for not saying anything.

"Where am I?" Tifa murmured, having finally found the strength to speak. She sounded so groggy, and it was almost as if the pain from her headache came through in her voice. But before she could elaborate on that thought, a voice entered her ears once again.

"Oh, you're awake!"

Tifa's eyes flickered open, and she saw a female standing by her bedside. A nurse. Why?

"What happened?" Tifa asked, rephrasing her question from earlier. _Why does my head hurt? Why am I in this place? _

"You're in the Holy Midgar Hospital. You were fighting in the war with your people when a bomb went off near your camp. Most of your fellow warriors were killed, but you were fortunate enough to make it here for care." The nurse spoke kindly to Tifa, her soft voice soothing the headache the girl already had. She had a sweet aura about her; her bright blue eyes and short blonde hair making her look very young. But the wisdom in her eyes seemed to express just how much she had seen in her life, however long it had been. "How are you feeling, dear?"

Tifa took a moment before finally speaking, wondering exactly how she was feeling. Physical pain wasn't too bad, just the headache. And her arm....her arm was hurting a little bit. She hardly noticed that, though, as she drifted into a deep state of thought.

_My name is Tifa Lockhart, and I'm in the middle of fighting a war. Not against the Turks or Shinra, but against a new class of Jenova bred soldiers. The Yuraks. I'm a class one hand-to-hand combatant, and was with my camp on the way to the battle front. But then.... _Memories of the surprise attack flooded Tifa's mind, and she shut her eyes again. Her friends were dead, missing, or long gone. It was the way the group travelled. Every man for himself. You don't worry about your teammates. It was not a wise way to fight, but it was the style Tifa had gotten used to. After all, she hadn't fought with a team in over a year. And that was with an old group of friends, fighting Kadaj's group and his summoned beast when they terrorized the city.

It had been just over a year since Sephoroth's reappearance, and his quick defeat. And Cloud's revival as well. That day, it had been such a relief to see him alive again. She had smiled at him, and she could have sworn he smiled back. That was the first smile from him she had seen in a while. And one of the last, for that matter. Only a few weeks after that day, Tifa had left her home with only a few necessities. It wasn't because of anyone around her, just troubling circumstances. Something was haunting her...something from her past. What it was, she didn't know. She had left to find out. Without saying goodbye. Sure, she had left a note, but it didn't explain a thing. It was a simple note, and she had no trouble remembering the one line she wrote.

_"I'm sorry it has to be like this, but I need to leave." _

It was as simple as that. She had left the note on the pillow of her bed, and then snuck out in the middle of the night. For half a year, she had wandered the wilderness, going from town to town in search of some cure to her distress. But she found nothing. What stunned her, though, was how she had to move stealthily. On several occasions, she had heard of Cloud and their other friends searching for her. One time, she had to hide in an abandoned warehouse to avoid them.

In the middle of her wandering, she saw a group of soldiers marching toward the Western Desert, a new land mass that had appeared close to an old chocobo farm. When she asked the soldiers what was going on, they explained without hesitation.

Since the end of Shinra, a new group had been rising up deep in the west. They were the Yuraks, and they were a force to be reckoned with. With Jenova's blood in their bodies, they were elite fighters. They believed they owned the world, and they were starting a global war to defeat all who stood in their way. They were approaching Midgar and Nibelhiem at that very moment, using the Western Desert as their path.

Within an hour of hearing these soldiers speak, Tifa enlisted in the army. Not just any part of the army. After all, she was not a sword fighter or gun wielder (though she could have done either if she wanted to). She joined the Rebks, a top class martial arts section of the army. In the six months she had been in the army, she was already one of the top in the class. She had gone on many missions; killed many Yuraks. And for what? A small bit of satisfaction? Tifa was doing work again, and not just bartending. She was working at something that mattered. Then why did she feel so empty inside?

That night, it was late evening, and Tifa's group of Rebks had just finished setting up camp. They would reach the Western front early the next afternoon and fight in the largest battle they had ever been in. At least, they would have, if it hadn't been for a surprise bombing that night. Tifa remembered the horror of seeing her teammates fall, and she tried to run. But a fragment impacted her, and the last thing she remembered seeing was the burning campsite.

And then she awakened in the hospital. This was the story of Tifa Lockhart thus far.

"Dear?"

"I'm fine," Tifa answered absently, opening her eyes again to see the nurse. Physically she was fine, anyway. Emotionally, not so much. But the nurse didn't care about this, and Tifa didn't bother sharing. It was her past, her mission. She was on her own now, and she was going to keep it that way. "When can I leave?"

The kind nurse smiled. "You just woke up," she stated. "Give us a little while to make sure you're alright."

*~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~*  
A day later, Tifa was released from the hospital. She had no serious injuries to keep her there, and her nurse proclaimed it was a miracle. _Heh, miracles don't exist, _Tifa wanted to say. But she kept that thought to herself. No need to create unnecessary conflict. And now, walking out the hospital doors, she was thankful she hadn't made a fuss. Her cooperation is partially why she was released so soon. That, and her strength. After all, she was trained as an elite fighter. And that's what she was.

Tifa reached up a hand and tucked back a strand of black hair. She looked down to the side as a tall blonde man walked past her and into the hospital. He seemed to be in a rush, but Tifa didn't bother thinking about it. After all, it was none of her business. Nor did she want it to be. She had to look out for herself now. If she didn't, nobody else would. The world was a lonely place, but it was something she couldn't change.

There was only one place she was going to go now, and that was to the Western Front. There was a war to be fought, and she wouldn't be left out of it. And besides, there was nowhere else for her to go now. Her home was the battle front, fighting to find a purpose. Or defend those who did have purpose. Whatever her duty was, she tried not to concern herself with it too much. Too much thought would only bring pain, as it had when she had left. Running away had been her only option when her emotions became so extreme, and it was her only option today as well.

Years ago, she had never run away from any problem or fight. She faced her problems head on with great courage. Often times, she acted simply to protect and watch out for her friends. But now that she was an individual, apart from the group, she acted very different. In fact, she didn't really know who she was anymore. It didn't matter. After all, who really answered the question "Who am I?" It was impossible to find out. A person could spend your whole life trying to figure it out, but in the end, Tifa knew it was a fool's mission.

_It doesn't matter,_ she told herself._ And besides, I'm not running away now. I'm running __**to**__ the battle front. _

Now a further distance from the hospital entrance, Tifa heard the automatic doors close, and footsteps a moment after that. "Gone again," a male voice said, his voice showing disappointment. But...it wasn't just any voice. It sounded so familiar. Even after days, weeks, and months of not hearing that voice, Tifa immediately knew who it was.

Cloud.

_He's here?! _Tifa panicked, though her physical features showed none of her nervousness. She had learned a long time ago to control her emotions so that others couldn't see what she was thinking. Her footsteps didn't even miss a beat as she kept walking away from the hospital. There was a park ahead, and there were just enough people and trees to keep her hidden. For a short while. Maybe she didn't even have to hide. Tifa looked different after two years; something she had worked hard on. Her dark hair wasn't quite as long as it was before, only going past her shoulders a little bit. Not only that, but she was thinner than before. The training she had received in the past months had really helped her change her appearance. And though she still was a fan of black, she now wore black jeans and a solid white quarter-sleeved shirt instead of her old black outfit. Of course; nobody would recognize her. She was invisible in this place. Still, Midgar was far too close to home. She wasn't going to stay.

The girl promptly moved behind a tree, very careful not to draw attention to herself. Scanning the area, she started to carefully lower herself to the ground, so her back was against the tree. And then, moments later, he walked by. From behind, he looked as if he hadn't changed at all. Except for his posture, which seemed a bit less proper than it had before. Stress?

_Oh no... _Cloud stopped a few feet in front of Tifa's tree, his back still turned toward her. What was he doing? Tifa didn't have to wait long for an answer, since Cloud reached into a pocket and pulled out a small object. A cell phone. Tifa's heart beat rapidly in her chest, and her eyes were wide as she stared up at Cloud.

"She wasn't there," the man said into the phone, disappointment and sorrow laced in his voice. Tifa quickly realized that she was being spoken about, and it made her heart skip a beat. After a moment of silence, she turned her head away and looked to the ground. "I don't know where she is now. Seems like I just missed her."

The sorrow in his voice...Tifa desperately wanted to get up and tell him she was right there. And that she wouldn't leave him again. But it was a promise she couldn't make. This was one battle she had to fight alone. Cautiously, she started to get off the ground, her suspicious eyes staying on Cloud. But he wasn't looking at her, his position the same as it had been before.

"I don't know," Cloud said, his voice tense. "The staff wouldn't give me any information at all. But I know she was there..." he trailed off for a moment, and then spoke again. "She has to be in Midgar. We should search the city. We can bring her home. **I **can bring her home," Cloud's voice was softer as he spoke that last sentence and Tifa felt her heart break. She wasn't sure why her emotions were so strong at that moment, and she tried to push them all back inside her, to a place she would never have to think about them again.

"But she belongs at home," Cloud pleaded into the phone, his normally calm and impassive voice full of emotion. There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. "Fine, if you won't help, I'll find her myself." Tifa heard the cell phone snap shut, and then she made her move, starting to walk through the grass, away from Cloud. Away from everything that she cared about.

Tifa Lockhart caught the next bus and left the city, planning to never return no matter what the circumstances. Fighting was her escape. No, there was something else. And though she wasn't willing to admit it out loud, she knew deep inside what was going on.

She was running away. Again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: A Lost Dream

"_Tifa. Tifa, get up."_

_Tifa groggily opened her eyes at the voice. She had grown to recognize it over the past few months, and when she opened her eyes, she knew she was right about whom the voice belonged to. Trent. He was an elite fighter as well, and he had taken a liking to her. But she showed no interest, despite the fact that he was the kind of man she had always dreamed about. He was kind, sensitive, and very brave. However, Tifa didn't allow herself to feel anything toward him. This was her journey, nobody else's. She wasn't about any fantasies or relationships hold her back._

"_What's up?" Tifa propped herself up against the tree she had been sleeping under, next to a kneeling Trent._

"_We're on the move." _

"_Already?" It was still the middle of the night. She was all for moving stealthily, but they had been travelling almost all of the previous day. How did their commander expect them to fight without sleep? _

"_Yeah," Trent confirmed, nodding his head. "We're not going far. This is just a danger spot, and we need to find a safer place to stay the night." The young man with spiky black hair started to get up, but then stopped halfway and offered Tifa a hand. "Come on." _

_Tifa stood without accepting his hand. And though she could tell he was disappointed, it didn't matter. Making friendships out here was the most foolish choice anyone could make out here. With all this war and senseless fighting, loosing comrades was bound to happen. Better not to know them, or the stories they had. As selfish as it sounded, Tifa knew it was the best option. Or was it?_

_Trent and Tifa walked together in the group, but silence hung in the air between them as they travelled. That is, until one moment a few hours into their walk. _

"_What's your story, Tifa?"_

_Tifa was startled at the question, and she turned her head to look at Trent. He was looking at her, but that wasn't a surprise. Trent knew he had to be bold with Tifa, and that's exactly what he did. But gosh, why'd he have to ask about this? It's not like Tifa went around telling this to everyone. Though the individuals that made up the group were all loners, Tifa was the worst of them all. Or was it the best? _

"_You know I don't like to talk about it," Tifa stated tensely, surprised at her tone of voice. But...it was __**her**__ story. Couldn't Trent understand that? The girl noticed a difference in Trent, though she wasn't quite sure what it was. Regret? Sorrow? Before the conversation could continue, a large light filled the skyline. What, an explosion? And it was about 20 yards in front of them! Tifa heard another explosion, and without looking, she knew it was about 20 yards behind them. They were being ambushed!_

"_Tifa, run!" Trent ordered, putting a hand on her shoulder. His green eyes shone with concern. Tifa stayed still. She was a better fighter than Trent was, even if it was just by a little bit. She shook her head. No. She would never run from a fight. Dismay appeared in Trent's eyes, but he didn't argue it. He too knew that Tifa would never leave. A line of ninja-like soldiers appeared near the first explosion site, and out of the corner of her eye, Tifa saw the same thing occurring behind them. Her group lined up in two separate groups, one facing forward, the other facing the opposite direction. Tifa faced the latter way with Trent close to her side. _

_There was no delay on either side of the confrontation. The second the Debks were ready, they charged toward the Yuraks, who were charging toward them as well. Tifa let out a battle cry as she reached her first opponent, her gloved fist knocking him right under the chin. Then her foot went into his stomach and she knocked the Jenova soldier back hard. To her pleasure, he collided with three other soldiers, injuring them as well. _

_The battle went on like this for a while. A soldier would try to attack Tifa, but she simply defended herself then attacked with greater accuracy and strength. Despite the circumstances, the Debks were winning the battle! Or so she thought. At one point, Tifa found herself surrounded by ten Yurak ninjas. It was then that she looked around and noticed something very significant: very few of her squad remained. They were either killed or ran off. Only one other person remained with her, and that person was none other than Trent. He had a sword in his hand, and he was fighting his way through a group of Yuraks. Trying to get to her._

_Tifa felt a bit of relief, though that emotion was not long lived. Three charged at her at once, and though a surprisingly small number of the larger group, Tifa knew dispatching three of these elite soldiers would prove quite difficult. Still, she rose up to the challenge. The woman jumped into the air and kicked the first soldier under then chin, getting rid of him immediately. When she landed again, she ran her foot along the ground and swept the two soldiers' feet out from underneath them. Without thought, she picked up two fallen swords and stabbed her fallen opponents in the hearts. When she looked up, the rest of the soldiers were looking at her in awe. A smirk appeared on her face. _

_A cry entered her ears, and that smirk quickly vanished. Trent! Tifa turned around swiftly, and she saw him on his hands and knees, blood trailing from his lip. His arm and back were bloody as well. Tifa took this in, but more than anything, she noticed his face and expression. He was looking up at the two soldiers in front of him, anger and fear both apparent in his eyes. Tifa couldn't stand to see that look in his eyes. She threw her sword in that direction and pierced on of the soldiers straight through the stomach. But before she could toss her other sword in that direction, the other seven charged at her. Blinking once in surprise, she charged forward in one direction, slashing through the first soldier that got in her way. She hardly noticed once the other ninjas were gone, her worry for Trent was so great. Once they were all vanquished, she turned around and saw him. Laying flat on his stomach, face buried in the ground. A sword sticking out of his back. The site terrified Tifa, and a scream left her lips without thought..._

"**Trent!**" she cried, bolting into an upright position. Tifa gasped hard and looked around, noticing the landscape. Of course, she wasn't at the battlefield. She was in a woodsy area past Midgar, and she had fallen asleep there after getting off the bus along the outskirts of her old city. Tifa swallowed, her eyes wide as she brought a hand to her forehead. That day had occurred two months ago, and yet she was still having nightmares about it? Why? She didn't love Trent...she didn't even know him. But something about him reminded her of the past. Was he a guardian angel, sent by Aerith to watch out for her?

Tifa scoffed at her own stupidity, forcing herself to her feet. No, that was a ridiculous idea. She didn't need to be watched out for; she would have defeated those soldiers on her own. Trent got in the way. A tear ran down her cheek, and she wasn't sure why. She forcefully wiped at the tear, and then started walking through the woods. If she kept moving, the thoughts wouldn't haunt her. She could get away from it if she moved fast enough. But walking wasn't good enough, not even close. She sped up to a jog, and then started to run. Running away again. But really, she never stopped running, did she?

Loving someone in such a short time was impossible. And besides, she couldn't love **Trent**. Why? ...She didn't know why. It was a fact that she didn't allow herself to feel anything toward others, but she had taken Trent's loss hard anyway. Perhaps because Trent was a lot like Aerith. Sweet, gentle, and surprisingly good with magic. Tifa bit her lip, continuing to run. It didn't matter now, did it? Aerith was in the past, and so was Trent. The past would continue to haunt her if she didn't let go of it. But how did one let of the past? It was so much easier said than done.

As she ran, she could almost hear her name in the wind. _Tifa...Tifa... _The voice was full of sorrow, but even more than that, the voice sounded like Aerith. Was she disappointed in Tifa for running so easily? Or leaving her friends heartbroken? Or was Aerith feeling pity that Tifa wasn't as strong as she let on? Tifa ran faster, wanting to abandon that thought. Another tear trailed down her cheek, but she didn't notice it or care.

Tifa ran until she couldn't run anymore, exhaustion taking a toll on her. She was almost completely through the wood now, and seeing the landscape in front of her, she could tell the sun was rising behind her. It was a new day. Another day to reflect on a past she didn't want any part of. Just another typical day that would probably end in regret and sorrow. It didn't matter. None of it mattered as long as she was a part of something meaningful. She pushed herself forward, exiting the woods and heading toward the Western Front.

_Trent wouldn't want you to be a part of the war_. The thought popped into her mind, surprising her. _Who cares? _she silently argued back. Trent didn't matter. Alright, he was a friend. He had stuck by her even when she hadn't wanted anyone to. But it was nothing more. Seriously, Tifa knew she didn't love him. Not the way she loved Cloud.

Tifa's eyes widened at the thought, and she gasped audibly. How could she possibly still be thinking about Cloud?! He was a part of her past now, and the past didn't matter. Tifa had forsaken all that was important to her, including Cloud, and all their other friends as well. Gosh, she would miss them so much if she let herself feel emotion. But...remembering the brightness of his eyes kept Tifa locked in her memories. He had always gazed at her with some mystery behind his eyes, some untold secret lurking behind them. And she had been alright with it. Though Cloud hardly shared anything with her, she felt honored when he did. It was at that those moments she knew how important she was to him. But then she had thrown it all away. _It was my only choice_, she told herself. It was a cop-out. She could have stayed if she had taken the time to think rationally. However, her whole life had been spent thinking logically. Why hold onto it if it wasn't working for her? Why hold onto that lifestyle if it was bringing her pain?

_...But I loved him_, the thought drifted into Tifa's mind, and tears started to flood her eyes as well. She left someone that she cared about deeply, as well as her closest friends. It was pure insanity. People would have killed for what she had, and yet she had willingly thrown it away. Maybe she was the fool after all. Was it too late to recover what she had lost?

Yes, it was far too late. She had let it go, and now she was too prideful to go back and beg for her old life. And besides, other than her friends, she really didn't have anything to go back to. A bartending job? Psh, what difference did that make? Supplying drunkards with the means to continue ruining their lives? That phase of her life was over. Now she had meaning again.

The sun was fully risen now, behind her as she moved west. In half a day, she would be at the battlefield. The army was probably there, fighting against the Yuraks. She could still join in; she would get there in time. After all, this wasn't going to be a quick battle. It was going to be a long, hard, and seemingly never-ending battle. But as long as she had a say in it, it would end. It had to. For she wasn't fighting for herself, or even anyone back home. She was fighting for the innocent, and those who had purpose. They needed protection, and she was going to give them just that.

First though, before she fought, she knew she needed more rest. After another hour of walking, she arrived at an abandoned chocobo farm. She laid herself down on what hay remained and promptly fell asleep, no dreams haunting her this time.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: A Raging War

A few hours after falling asleep, Tifa woke up from her slumber, itchy and hot from her sleeping location. She sleepily ran a hand through her hair, feeling some straw in her long black locks. "Ugh," she tisked disgustedly, pulling the straw out of her hair. Falling asleep on a pile of straw had seemed like a good idea, but waking up now, she almost regretted making that decision. But in the long run, it didn't really matter. Within seconds of waking up, she remembered her mission: making it to the Western Front.

The young woman quickly picked herself up, brushing away the last pieces of hay as she rose to her feet. She was only about an hour away, and judging by the heat and light, it was early afternoon. Good; she had plenty of time to get there and fight. It was her duty to fight...a duty she would willingly fulfill. Tifa Lockhart walked out of the chocobo barn, continuing to head west. Along the way, she thought of nothing but fighting. Fighting techniques, fighting with her group, fighting strategy...those were the best things she could think about. After all, how could she be distracted from fighting when she was thinking **about** fighting itself?

Forty-five minutes later, the first signs of battle started to appear. Blood on the ground, a cloudy horizon...she was definitely heading in the right direction. Not only that, but she could faintly hear swords clanging. Swords? Great; hand-to-hand combat was not going to be such a smart move in this battle. She'd have to grab a sword when she had the opportunity. Adapting to battles was a great asset to all warriors, and that teaching was strict in the way of the Debks. Tifa wondered if anyone from her group would be there, though she doubted it. Most people didn't run into battle like this.

Later, along the horizon, she finally saw the battle itself. And gosh...there was so much blood on the ground. So many fallen people. But even more were still fighting. Most of them were dressed in old Shinra uniforms. Those had been the only available for this war, and Tifa didn't mind that they were used. After all, they were very protective. If she didn't need the freedom to move so much, she would wear one herself. At that moment, one of the soldiers was knocked down, and she growled in anger. Those horrible Yuraks! They would pay for all the damage they were doing. Tifa let out a battle cry and charged up the hill, engaging in the battle herself.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The battle was long and hard. Both groups were still fighting ferociously despite the fact that the battle had been going on for hours. Apparently neither group was willing to end until their missions were accomplished. And of course, Tifa was right there along with everyone else. She hated these Yuraks...more than she had hated anyone in a while. Even Sephiroth and Shinra. Instead of dwelling on her emotions of sorrow and loneliness, Tifa transferred all her thoughts to hating Yuraks. Though she still felt very empty inside, it was good for her to be distracted by despising the Jenova bred soldiers and ninjas.

Tifa withdrew once from battle when there was a free moment, the young woman needing a breath of fresh air. Everything around her stunk of dead bodies and blood. However, this was not the only reason she left. During the whole thing, she could have sworn she heard her name being called. Several times by the voice of the Lifestream, and others by people around her. She needed to scan the area, to see what exactly was going on here.

The area looked worse than it had earlier. More fallen soldiers were lying on the ground, and their blood was soaking into the planet. Looking at the fighters, the sides looked about even. It was the same as when she had started, only with less people. This battle was hopeless! It wasn't going to end anytime soon.

Tifa raised a hand and wiped sweat off her brow. But sweat wasn't the only thing that came off. There was blood too. Tifa felt sick to her stomach at the site, and she quickly wiped it off on her torn jeans. When she did that, she saw that her shirt was partially torn as well. The damage wasn't too bad, but she could see her stomach a little bit. And a small amount of blood from the gash as well.

Suddenly, Tifa heard the sound of footsteps coming towards her. She quickly looked up and saw a terrifying sight: 20 Yurak ninjas surrounding her! Her eyes widened in panic, and she took a few steps back. Closer to the edge of a cliff. Only a thin, flimsy railing was between her and the edge. Scanning the men in black around her, she saw that her only exit was to jump. But it was so far down! She could either put up a fight here and die, or jump and die. Either way, it was the end of her. The thought scared her, and yet her heart was surprisingly calm. It was reality. No use fussing over something she couldn't change.

"**Tifa!!**"

Tifa's eyes grew larger at the voice, and she looked out past the surrounding Yuraks to see a swordsman fighting strong, trying to get towards her. A blonde swordsman, who used a very large sword. Cloud? How was he there? The young woman suddenly had a change of heart; she didn't want to run away anymore. She desperately wanted to fight along-side Cloud again, no matter what the end results were. Because when she was with him, things always turned out alright. But now, standing here surrounded by the ninjas, she had a feeling things could not be alright. The Yuraks suddenly charged forward, but Tifa kept her eyes on Cloud. She caught onto his eyes for one brief moment, and he saw hers as well. His shown with concern and fierce determination. Hers probably reflected the latter of the two emotions. With a soft grunt, she jumped backwards, over the rail and off the cliff.

The rushing wind impacted her, and Tifa furrowed her brows slightly as she fell. She heard a faint noise below her, and she knew her timing was impeccable; a train was coming. Within a second of having this realization, she felt herself land on the hard metal train. She landed on her feet, but the pressure made her fall flat on her back, and the crashing sound that resulted from the impact made her feel as if a bomb had detonated. But it was only her own pain. The young woman hissed in pain, bringing a hand to her stomach without thought or hesitation. She set the other hand on the train and started to push herself up. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a few black specks falling from the sky. Ninjas.

She stumbled a step before she started running to the front of the train. It was a long, long train. If she could make it to the front, she could sneak into the train and find a weapon of some kind. Then she could take on these lousy Yuraks.

Before she had the chance to get any further, a person in black appeared on top of the train in front of her. And then another. And a third. Tifa turned around, but she saw many more covering her exit route. She couldn't take them all...especially when they were surrounding her on a moving train. A lone building came up on her right, and she leapt off the train without hesitation. The female fighter flipped once in the air before bringing out her leg, kicking through a glass window as she broke into the building. She landed on the ground with a soft thud, and she struggled against fatigue as she took a few running steps forward.

Pain exploded from her back, and Tifa felt herself fly forward, landing face first on the ground. But she quickly pushed herself back up, kicking the surrounding ninjas while she balanced herself on her hands. This is not good, this is really not good, Tifa thought as she picked herself up off the ground. The building was swarming with Yuraks, and in the chaos, they were positioning themselves as to take her on. A bunch of them were at a distance, seemingly with bows or some other kind of long distance weapon. Tifa wasn't too concerned about them at the moment, knowing the faster she got done with the hand-to-hand combat, the sooner she could take care of the bowmen.

Tifa threw more punches and kicks, knocking down five of the ninjas that had swarmed at her. One of them got in a blow, the sword cutting her stomach worse than it had already been. The young woman threw an extra-hard punch at this ninja, sure to take him down. Whether it was for strategy purposes or for revenge she didn't know. Nor did she care at that moment. Surviving was her main concern.

She fought on for what seemed like eternity, but it could have been only a few minutes in reality. However long it was, Tifa was feeling the strain of battle. More wounds were on her body now, and she was weary from the ongoing battle. She knew that she couldn't take this abuse much longer. And the worse part was, there were no less ninjas then when she had started. She had no idea how this was happening, but the ninjas kept on coming. Fighting was not an option anymore; she had to get out. **Now.**

Turning to her right, she saw something she hadn't noticed before: an open garage door. And a large white van sitting by it. Perhaps that was how there were more ninjas in the building. Either way, Tifa knew she had her escape route. She threw one more punch at a persistent ninja before turning, stumbling a few steps before fully sprinting toward the opening.

An arrow flew past her, and then another. Those were all far from her, so she knew these ninjas either had terrible aim or they were not going for her. It didn't matter as long as she made it to the exit. She saw one go right past her ear and into a large, sealed container. And then the sight of fire appeared in her eye, and the explosion impacted her and sending her flying. In mid-flight, Tifa realized what had happened: they hadn't been aiming for her, but for the container that exploded. And now there was a fiery wall in front of her, blocking the way out. None of that mattered though; she was too wounded to move off the ground, let alone fight. The sound of a cackling fire entered her ears, and she opened her eyes a crack to see what was going on. One lone ninja was approaching her, and he was somehow different than the rest. His outfit was not pure black, but a faint grey. Almost white.

Tifa grunted softly when this man reached down and grabbed her by the arm, forcing her to her feet. She could stand, surprisingly. But without his grip, she wouldn't have been able to. Not that she wanted his help; she wanted to run and reach a safe haven. But that wasn't about to happen.

The man chuckled softly, piercing blue eyes looking at Tifa through the holes of his mask. "Oh, how I have waited for this day," he started. "You are a legend in your army, a terminator of my people. All throughout the battles of late, I have had my people target you. But sadly you have escaped me every time" His eyes turned serious, and he suddenly lifted his free hand and gripped Tifa's neck tightly. "Now you will not have the opportunity to escape me again." Tifa grunted softly, struggling to get free. But this man was too strong for her. Even if she was in full health, she had a feeling that it would be difficult to defeat him. She had fought bravely thus far, but the realization that she was about to die for real made her heart beat extremely fast. After everything, she was just going to die here in this abandoned Shinra warehouse.

"**NO!"** The battle cry suddenly entered Tifa's ears. Her eyes widened when a figure in black suddenly charged from the side, a large sword coming in contact with the grey ninja's side. A cry came from his mouth as he was knocked back, his grip on Tifa disappearing completely. The young woman fell to the ground, her hand landing palm-down to keep her on her knees. She shook her head slightly, shaking away the cloudiness from her mind. And then she saw it. Cloud, beating this ninja to a pulp with omnislash. It didn't make sense to her...how was he using a limit so early in a battle? He hadn't been torn apart as she had, and yet he was fully charged to do his trademark move. Something must have triggered this. Something must have triggered this rage.

The limit break had finished, probably before the head Yurak had any idea what hit him. Cloud put his large sword in its case before rushing over to Tifa, kneeling down next to her. "Tifa?" he asked frantically, his eyes searching her. His bright blue eyes scanned over her entire body, seeing the blood that covered her. Tifa saw the room spin, and she blinked several times in an effort to correct the tilt. Apparently Cloud didn't notice this, too drawn to the wounds that covered her body. Finally, he spoke again.

"You're coming home," he said softly, his eyes connecting with Tifa's. Tifa didn't bother responding, knowing she had no choice in the matter. She was too tired and weary to run again, or fight Cloud with words. Besides, she didn't feel like doing that now, anyway. Her silence must have been answer enough, because Cloud moved himself beside her, sliding his arm around her waist. She allowed him to help her, the girl rising to her feet alongside him. Once upright, she leaned into him, trusting that he would support her. His sad eyes were on her for a moment before his gaze left her, the two starting to walk toward some exit.

_**Bang! **_

The noise erupted from the other side of the warehouse, and Tifa suddenly felt a slug hit her in the back of the head. Her vision swam as she felt herself fall to the ground, her head pounding with an intensity she never knew possible. Just before she would have impacted the ground, two strong arms came under her armpits. The person behind her knelt down a little bit with her to catch her fall.

"Tifa?!" The sound of her name forced her to furrow her eyebrows more, pain ringing from her head. A bullet had collided with her skull, and she felt herself fading. But....no! If she lost consciousness, she surely wouldn't wake up again. She had to fight to keep a grip on reality.

Chuckling came from the other side of the room, and Cloud turned his head to see the ninja-leader pointing a gun in his direction. But not directly at him; at Tifa. This man should have been finished off, but because of his great strength, he had survived. Still, he was clearly near death. But this fact did not diminish the threat he possessed at that moment. "First I will get rid of the girl--" the leader coughed weakly, his gun shaking a little bit. "—then I will take care of you." He started to pull the trigger.

"Hiyaaa!" Yuffie threw her weapon at the leader, knocking the gun out of his hand. The startled man looked down at his hand, and while he was stunned, the female ninja ran in, kicking him to the ground. "Cloud, get her outta here!" she said frantically, running toward a group of ninjas that had started to take an interest in the threesome.

Tifa felt Cloud move quickly, one arm around her back and the other underneath her legs. Before she fully understood what was going on, he had picked her up and was hurrying toward a door. Moments later, he skidded to a halt, and she knew that ninjas were blocking the exit despite the fact that her eyes were closed. She felt herself slipping away. She couldn't hold on much longer...

"Ya!" A loud male stepped in, swinging his spear at a group of ninjas. Loud thuds sounded throughout the area from his attacks as well as those from Yuffie behind them. "Go!" Cid shouted. Cloud started moving again, this time not just walking fast, but running. Gunshots sounded throughout the area, and then Tifa knew Barret and Vincent had arrived as well. Growling entered her ears too. And a high-pitched voice. Red and Cait Sith. Everyone was there, fighting while Cloud tried to get her out. But with the way things were going now, she wasn't going to make it out. Not alive....not in time. They were fighting for nothing.

Cloud kicked a door open, and a fresh breeze impacted Tifa. Her wounds started to sting worse, sand from the desert area getting into her cuts. She felt herself drooping in Cloud's arms, her strength leaving her.

"Tifa, hold on," Cloud pleaded. His voice rang in her ears, and she had no energy to respond. She felt him set her down on the ground, her body sitting in an upright position against the wall of the building. Her head drooped forward, her chin resting on her chest. She wasn't going to make it; there was absolutely no way. Too much blood had been lost, and her head was throbbing too much. It hurt too badly. What was Cloud doing? He wasn't with her anymore, and she felt herself fading....

A rain drop landed on her nose, making her flinch slightly. And then another on her arm, stinging a wound she had received earlier. The rain was drizzling, not coming down too hard, but still making her wet enough to feel bothered and, in some strange way, bringing her out of her daze.

A moment later, she felt a bottle touch her lips, and Cloud's hand on her chin. Opening her mouth and gently pushing her head back so she could take the liquid. It went down her throat, and she swallowed weakly two times to get it all down. The potion didn't come close to healing her completely, but it made enough of an impact for her to know that she wasn't going to die now. She could last a little longer, as long as nothing else happened.

"I don't have any more potions," Cloud mumbled, his voice close to Tifa. "Sorry."

Tifa nodded faintly, though she wasn't sure Cloud could see it. She had no choice but to put up with the pain. She would be okay if she wasn't injured again. A few moments later, Cloud picked her up and somehow got her on the back of his motorcycle. How, she didn't know. Tifa was too out of it to consciously pay attention to what was going on. Once the cycle started, she knew that Cloud was rushing her home, where she could be better taken care of. It was then that she allowed herself to lose consciousness as the rain poured down on her.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Home

The next few days were a blur to Tifa Lockhart. After arriving home, and apparently in bed for quite some time, she awakened to feel Cloud cast cure on her. But the Materia was so weak that it had little impact. Her head pounded a little less, but that was about it. This was how it was for the rest of the week; Cloud or Yuffie would come in with the materia and cast cure, but it only made a small impact. Those were about the only times that Tifa was awake. The rest of the time, she was either asleep or pretending to be asleep. After all, what was she supposed to say to these people? She had abandoned them, a humiliating and embarrassing thing to do.

One day, (Tifa couldn't recall which), Cloud had fallen asleep by her bedside. His hand was covering hers when she had awakened. She didn't bother moving her hand away.

Now, a week after that day, Tifa was aware enough to be awake most of the day. And she was extremely bored. She was used to fighting her days away, or running to a battle field. Lying in bed was torturous for her, even if her wounds had not yet healed completely. So she decided to walk downstairs to the bar...just to do something different.

First, she sat herself up, which required a surprising amount of effort. Her stomach hurt very badly. She wrapped an arm around it as she forced herself to her feet, wincing at the pain. Oh well...now that she was standing, surely the pain couldn't be so bad. She started walking.

After going through the hall and down the stairs, Tifa felt as if leaving the bedroom was a bad idea. She was hurting very badly, and the weakness that had kept her docile had returned to her. Still, she was at the bottom of the stairs now. At least she had made it to the bar. She gripped onto the railing with one hand, the other wrapped around her stomach.

"You're not leaving again, are you?"

The deep voice startled Tifa, and she looked over at one of the tables to see where the voice came from. There sat Vincent Valentine, just staring at her.

"No," Tifa responded quietly. "I'm not leaving again." That was partially true; she wasn't leaving right then and there. She didn't ever want to leave, but she knew that she'd have to return to the battle field someday soon to finish what she started.

"Good." Vincent's voice brought her out of her thoughts and she locked eyes with him. He knew there was more going on here, but he didn't push it. Smart.

Tifa shifted on her feet, uncomfortable with the awkward silence. But even more than that, she was uncomfortable with her wounds. They were really aching. She released the stair-railing as she walked over to the tables, sitting herself down in one of the chairs at the same table as Vincent. They had never been too close, but after all they had gone through together with Sephiroth, there was a bond. Even if she couldn't identify what that bond was, it was there.

"Why'd you run away?" Vincent asked, surprising Tifa. Since when had he inquired about anybody? A lot must have changed in a year. Still, the question was what unnerved her the most. She never had found what she was looking for. Instead of answering his question, she stayed silent.

It didn't matter anyway; before she could answer the entrance door opened up and Cloud walked in. As soon as her eyes caught his, she felt her heart drop. He wasn't going to like the fact that she was up and out of bed when she was still wounded.

"Tifa, what're you doing out of bed?" Yup, that was the question she was expecting. Still, the concern behind his voice is what made her heart skip a beat. He was so worried about her...

"I needed to get out of that room, just for a little while," the young woman responded, surprised at how timid and small she sounded.

Cloud's eyes softened as he hurried over to her, the door closing behind him. He knelt down in front of her and grabbed her hand, sending Tifa into a state of stunned silence. Who was this passionate, new Cloud?

"I understand that," he started sympathetically. "But you shouldn't have come down here on your own. You could have hurt yourself."

Tifa felt tears appear in her eyes, a result of Cloud's care. She looked away, her gaze on the ground beside Cloud. "I'm sorry."

"No, no, no; Please don't cry," the blonde-hair man pleaded, his hand gripping Tifa's a little more tightly. "It's alright," he said softly. After a moment's pause, he spoke again. "Why don't you stay down here for a little while longer and then go back up to bed?"

Tifa nodded slightly, fighting hard to keep the tears locked up inside. He cared so much, and now, seeing how badly she had hurt him by running, she wanted to vomit. How could she be so cruel to this man? As if on cue, Cloud rose to her feet, leaving her at the table with Vincent once again. But out of the corner of her eye, she couldn't see Vincent Valentine anymore. So she turned her head a little bit, only to realize that he had left sometime during the conversation. She was alone again.

She stayed downstairs for another ten minutes before going back up to the bedroom, fearful that others would return and see her tears if she stayed downstairs. As soon as she got upstairs she collapsed into her bed and cried into her pillow.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Two days later, Tifa was lying in her bedroom, just staring at the ceiling. Her wounds had continued to heal, and she could move around the house freely if she desired. That is, if she was careful not to reinjure herself. Cloud seemed to be around every corner, watching her to make sure she was alright. If not Cloud, then Yuffie. Or Cait Sith. It seemed as if they were all fearful of her leaving again.

So in the end, Tifa was so sick of being babysat that she just stayed in her room, knowing she had the most privacy in there.

But that day, something felt different. The entire building was eerily quiet. It seemed as if nobody were home, which didn't make sense. Where would they have gone? A faint noise entered her ear, and she instinctively sat up in her bed. It sounded like something had fallen downstairs. She didn't know what it was, but she had a bad feeling about it. The young woman forced herself out of bed, exiting the room and heading toward the stairs. Once on the stairs, she went down carefully, as to not make much noise.

At the bottom, she stood hidden by a wall. She peeked around the corner. "Hello?" Nothing was there; nothing was out of place. She searched the entire downstairs, but nothing was going on. Everything was perfectly normal, except for the fact that she was by herself today. Still, something didn't feel right....and she had learned to trust her instinct.

By the time Tifa made it back up the stairs, she was even more tense. Something just was not right here. And it was even more frustrating that she couldn't discover what the problem was. Well, she couldn't stay out of bed forever. She reentered her bedroom, and just when she was about to climb into bed again, she heard a noise behind her. The sound of metal going through the air. She instinctively ducked and the three metal darts went into the wall in front of her. It was an attack! She turned around, seeing six assassins enter the room. They all had different weapons, but she didn't have the time to take that into account. All of them wore the sashes of an assassin, and it was then that Tifa knew she was in grave trouble. She wasn't up to full strength, so taking out these six men would be a great challenge. Before they could charge her, she charged at the nearest one, grabbing his head and banging it into the wall. He went down, but Tifa knew it was only a momentary occurrence.

She felt wind from an oncoming sword and she did a back flip onto the bed, kicking at two of the ninjas. For another minute or so, she fought them off, using her height as an advantage.

This didn't work for long though. These were skilled assassins, taught to change to their surroundings. One hit Tifa's legs with his sword and she immediately fell off the bed, onto her knees. Just as she rose again, one of the men rushed forward, punching her right in the gut. She let out a cry as she felt herself fly backwards, through the second-story window.

A loud thud sounded when she landed on the hard pavement, painful bursts reverberating throughout her body. _Get up!_ her mind screamed at her, and she forced her body to comply. She got up on her feet just in time, two of the ninjas jumping out the window. Disgusted, she high-kicked the first one that landed, then punched the other hard. The rest jumped out and landed around her, and she did one powerful combo that knocked all of them off their feet. But they got right back up. Ugh! Her body sagged in weakness.

"Tifa!"

The young woman kicked at one ninja before turning her head to the entrance of the bar. Denzel was standing there, with a sword. Oh, he must have been at the neighbor's house earlier. _Wait,_ Tifa backed up her thoughts. _He's standing there with a sword?!_ He had that look on his face, which told her he was going to join this battle. No way! Not with opponents this tough.

"Denzel, get back inside!" Tifa scolded, punching the ninjas as they came up to her. She couldn't keep fighting them off like this, but if she allowed Denzel to join this battle, then they would both go down. She wasn't going to allow that to happen.

"It's alright!" he shouted back. "Cloud taught me how to fight."

"Go back inside! This fight is too difficult for you. Go make sure Marlene is safe." She got knocked down while she was distracted, then came back up fighting the four remaining assassins.

"But...Tifa!"

"**Now** Denzel!"

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Denzel go inside. Good; at least the boy had sense in him. Cloud and the others really took good care of him in the past year. Pain shot out through her back, and she hissed at the extremity of it. She kicked the ninja behind her, knocking him out of the equation. Tifa slowly turned in a circle, seeing three ninjas surround her. _Not good. Not good at all. _

They charged at her and she leapt up into the air to avoid them. When she landed, she punched the ground, sending a small shock-wave through the pavement. It would have helped if she had earth materia! While they were distracted, Tifa shoved two of their heads together. The remaining ninja sprang forward, tackling her to the ground. They rolled for a few moments, and at the end of it, Tifa found herself underneath her attacker. He had a dagger in his hand.

Tifa's eyes widened slightly in anger as she tried to squirm out from underneath him. But he was gripping her shoulder too tightly with his free hand for her to do a thing. There was no escape, unless she got a miracle. However, she had a feeling she was out of luck today.

"**Tifa!**"

The distraction, whether meant to distract her attacker or not, worked in her advantage. She threw a hard punch at the ninja's jaw, knocking him off of her. The dagger fell out of his hand and pierced the ground next to her arm. The girl lifted herself up quickly in case she had to fight again, but the final assassin did not rise to his feet. He groaned from his spot on the ground, but he made no move to attack her again. Good; she couldn't handle any more abuse today.

She stumbled slightly, taking a step back before falling on one knee. "Tifa!?" she heard her name spoken frantically, and a hand was set on her shoulder. Her brown eyes flickered over and up in time to see Cloud standing next to her, worry in his bright blue eyes.

"I'm fine," she panted, blinking when a bead of sweat came onto her forehead. Cloud's eyes stayed on her a moment longer before he looked forward, seeing a ninja crawling on the ground. The expression in his eyes changed from gentleness to pure rage as he took his hand off Tifa's shoulder. He walked forward a few steps and grabbed onto the final assassin, pulling him into an upright position before pushing him against the wall. Tifa winced slightly when she saw how aggressive he was.

"Who are you?! Why are you here?" Cloud's wrath was apparent in his voice. He didn't wait for an answer. "What do you want with Tifa?!" The assassin only chuckled. "Answer me!" Cloud growled, shoving him against the wall with more force.

"She's an elite fighter..." he said through his ragged laugh. "...High price on her head, there is. Thought I'd hunt down the little girl myself and get a nice vacation or girl for myself if you know what I mean..."

Cloud growled again, shoving the ninja's head against the building. He collapsed this time; his body slumped against the wall. Probably dead.

Tifa felt dizzy at that moment, tired from the battle. She set a hand on the pavement, her head drooping as she shut her eyes. Wounds on her stomach and arms were bleeding now, all thanks to those stupid assassins. Seconds later she heard Cloud rush over. He came behind her, gently gripping her around the waist. This movement gave her no choice but to lean back into him, which she did.

"I'm so sorry," Cloud whispered, bringing her closer to him as gently as he could.

Tifa was confused. "Why?" she whispered in response, her eyes closing partway in tiredness.

"For not being here." Pause. "I should have protected you better than I have."

There was pain in his voice. That was the last thing she wanted to hear. "It's not your fault I get myself into trouble," she said softly. She opened her eyes fully as she looked up at him, just in time to see him frown slightly. The frown wasn't directed at her, but at the circumstances. Things were much more serious and dramatic than she could have imagined. And things were not going to get better on their own, that was for sure. This was a very serious, critical matter.

After that, Cloud helped her inside and back up to bed, where she promptly fell asleep and dreamed of the dangerous life ahead of her.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: A Goodbye and A New Beginning

Tifa remained in her old home for another two weeks, staying mostly in bed so that her wounds would recover more quickly. Several times throughout that period, more assassins had come to exterminate her. But Cloud was always nearby, and he fought them off no problem. Even though he probably hadn't fought for about a year, he hadn't lost any of his strength. In a strange way, it was encouraging for Tifa to know that she could lean back on somebody dependable while she couldn't defend herself. Oh sure, she could fight if she needed to. But the chance of being wounded more seriously hung heavy on her shoulders, and on Cloud's. He wasn't going to allow her to fight any time soon.

However, Tifa felt differently. In those two weeks, her wounds had mostly disappeared. She was strong enough to leave now. And that was what she was about to do. The young woman understood she couldn't expect Cloud to protect her forever. She had to finish what she started and terminate this threat for herself.

_All done,_ she thought to herself, putting the cure materia in her armor. It wasn't any fine armor, just something to get the job done. She wasn't going to steal from her friends, not now or ever. But...was it really considered stealing since she was going to return this stuff to them? After everything was taken care of, she planned on returning. And this time, she was going to stay. However, it wasn't the time for that; it was the time to leave. The house was quiet, so she could probably slip out unnoticed. _Ok, here I go..._

Tifa silently exited her room, turning right away to go down the stairs. One step creaked, but otherwise she was very hushed. At the bottom, she scanned the area. Nobody was there. A very unusual occurrence. This to her screamed that it was time to leave. Before anybody came back. She was sorry to worry them again, but if she didn't take care of the problem, they'd be worried for much longer. Tifa headed toward the front door.

A high-pitched screaming entered her ears, making her stop dead in her tracks. All of a sudden, a small little cat jumped in front of the entrance. Cait Sith was home, and apparently he knew what was happening here.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, as if he didn't already know. But the tone of his voice told her the opposite was true, as she suspected.

"I need to take care of this problem," Tifa said simply, taking a step forward. It was a bold move on her part, but it was the only way she could think of to get past Cait Sith. She had a plan.

"Let us help you," the cat pleaded. "You can't handle this on your own."

Tifa tensed at his words. "I can and I will. This is my fight, not yours." She walked forward, approaching the door.

"Stop!"

When she was one step away from the animal, she moved her foot to the side and forward, gently kicking the cat out of the way. He tumbled to the side, sitting on the ground. His wide eyes stared up at Tifa, and the girl suddenly felt some pity for him. "Sorry Reeve," she said softly. "I have to go." The cat remained silent, knowing he could do nothing to stop her. Tifa Lockhart opened the door and took a step forward before coming to a complete halt, something else blocking her exit.

Cloud was standing right there, arms at his side as he stared at her calmly. "You can't get past me Tifa," he said softly. "You're not leaving."

Tifa took a few steps back, her wide eyes returning to normal size. She stopped there, determination in her eyes. "I'll fight you if I have to," she said shakily. Though she desperately didn't want to, this was something she needed to do. If not for her sake, but for her friends as well. She couldn't stand to see them worry so greatly.

"Don't do it, Teef." Barret's voice came from behind her, and she turned around halfway to see him standing five steps away. "We can't let you leave. You wus almost killed out there! We're not loosing you agin!"

Their concern was heartbreaking, but Tifa knew that she had to go. Everyone was suddenly showing up around her, so she guessed the rest of the gang would be here soon as well. She shook her head, bringing a hand up to her chest. "I can't stay, Barret,' she said quietly. "If I don't take care of this now, things are only going to get worse. This is my fight, not yours. Isn't that what you said when you fought Dyne a few years ago? You should understand this more than anyone."

Barret remained silent, so Cloud spoke up for him. "Whether that's the case or not, you're not leaving here. This isn't just your fight any more."

Tifa had been listening to Cloud, but a thought suddenly hit her mind and made her feel frozen. There was a back door. Nobody was guarding that, most likely. If she went there calmly, as if she were going for the stairs, then they wouldn't follow her until it was too late. Only Cloud and Barret knew about that back door. Barret wouldn't stop her, since he was too lost in his thoughts of Dyne to move. And Cloud was at the front door. He wouldn't get to the back in time. She had to move now, or else she would be stuck in that house for a very long time. After all, since they saw her trying to leave now, they were going to have somebody on watch all the time. _Now or never_, Tifa thought as she turned around, calmly heading in the direction of the stairs. She even looked as if she were defeated by Cloud's pleads. No footsteps followed her; they believed she was going up to her bedroom.

She walked past the stairs and she heard Cloud gasp. He knew now what was going on. Tifa made a break for it, running down the remainder of the hall. She reached the door and pulled it open, rushing outside. Then she slammed it behind her and started to run once again. Sprinting through the alley, she knew that none of her friends could catch her now. She was free. After all, they didn't have time materia equipped, and they were too far back now to stop her.

An arrow flew into the brick wall beside her head, and she skidded to a halt in shock. Were her friends shooting at her? No, of course not! Tifa lifted her eyes to see a line of ninjas on the rooftop, bows pointed at her. She turned her head to look at the other building. Same there! How were there so many? Turning back to the safety of home was not an option; she had to flee. She ran, arrows suddenly spraying the ground behind her. Her heart raced as she sped down the long alley. If she made it out, then she could escape. Almost to the end now...

An arrow pierced her arm, and she cried out in surprise. Still, she continued to run. The sounds of the city filled her ear, cars speeding on the roads. The assassins would not target the people, only her. They had no idea that if they hurt any of the people, she would return and save them. She always was tender-hearted to those in hard situations. The sidewalk was ahead of her now, only about ten feet. She could make it!

Another arrow pierced her in the back and she flew forward at the very edge of the alley. _No,_ she wheezed, setting a hand on the ground to prop herself up. The girl turned around, seeing a bunch of ninjas land on the ground behind her. The sound of a motorcycle roaring made her turn forward, and she saw Cloud there on Fenrir, staring at her.

"Come on!" he urged, extending a hand toward her. Tifa had no choice but to obey. She quickly picked herself up, taking a few steps forward toward the bike. Her hand went to his as she placed herself behind him on the cycle. He sped off, leaving their foes behind them. Gunfire sounded from the alley, and Tifa immediately knew Barret was taking care of the problem.

Tifa wrapped her uninjured arm around him before leaning against his back, her wounds throbbing terribly. She couldn't do anything about it now though; if she cast cure while the arrows were still in her, the skin would heal around them and make them stuck there. She knew what she had to do. As soon as they were at a safe place, she would pull out the arrows and then cast cure. It was the one option she had. The young woman shut her eyes, trying to be patient.

Before she even recognized what was happening, they bike stopped. She opened her eyes and saw that they were on a hill over-looking the city. The place where Cloud kept his old sword. Of course; this was not only a safe place, but it was also a place that the others knew about. He was going to have everyone meet there, since they couldn't go home.

Tifa released Cloud and climbed off the bike. Before her friend could understand what she was doing, Tifa grabbed onto the arrow in her back and pulled it out. She gasped at the pain, her hand opening. The arrow fell to the ground, and she felt dizzy when she saw the blood on it. Next, she extended her arm. Cloud's wide eyes stayed on her as she pulled out the second arrow. She hissed at the pain, but didn't lose her cool. The green materia started to glow on her arm as she cast cure on herself. The wounds started to close, and her pain died down for the most part. It was frustrating how weak that materia was.

As the pain faded, Tifa suddenly felt a warm sensation. Her brown eyes flickered upward, and she saw that Cloud was standing directly in front of her. And his hand was on her cheek; that was what really caught her attention. And the tenderness in his eyes...

"You okay?" he asked, breaking through her thoughts. Tifa felt herself blush faintly, slightly unnerved because of the suddenness of everything. She nodded a little bit, careful not to move Cloud's hand off her cheek. The desire to kiss him was almost overwhelming her all of a sudden, but she restrained herself. Since when had she felt so emotionally connected to him?

Cloud seemed to sense her awkwardness, so he took his hand off her cheek. Tifa felt a small sense of dismay because of this. However, she felt very grateful when wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. The girl silently exhaled, embracing him as well. Her head rested against his shoulder as she let herself melt away, trusting he would protect her. Maybe she couldn't handle this on her own after all...

"Barret will be here soon with the others," Cloud said softly. "Then we'll decide what our next course of action is."

Tifa nodded faintly. She understood now that there was no "I" anymore; it was always going to be "we". Especially after what had happened back at their home. For a long while, the two of them just stood there. Cloud graciously kept her in his arms, holding her just tightly enough to make her heart feel warmer, but still light enough that she could move if she wanted to. And eventually, that was what she had to do. Although she was mostly healed from everything, she still was tired. Tifa gently pulled herself away from Cloud, feeling his arms return to his side as well. She was hesitant to make eye contact with him as she stepped past him, toward the edge of the cliff. Once there, she gently sat herself down, legs dangling over the edge. Moments later, Cloud appeared beside her.

"I wish I hadn't gotten you guys involved," Tifa admitted quietly, ashamed she had created such and uproar in her friends' lives.

"You shouldn't. None of us regret bringing you home." Cloud turned his head to look at her. "I know I wouldn't have it any other way."

"This whole thing has ruined things for you guys, though," Tifa persisted. "Now Denzel and Marlene don't have a home. And it's my fault."

"Tifa. Don't." Cloud insisted. "You didn't summon the assassins. You didn't mean for any of this to happen. Denzel and Marlene as brave kids. They'll make it through this." He paused. "I'm more worried about you. You've....changed."

Tifa nodded faintly, her eyes staying down. "I don't know who I am anymore," she confessed softly. That thought almost brought tears to her eyes, but she kept it inside. She didn't want pity from anyone, especially not Cloud.

"I think...I understand," Cloud said. Tifa looked up at him, curious as to what he was going to say. "You're running away because you're afraid of something. Maybe you're afraid of letting others see you in weakness. Everyone stumbles sometimes, Tifa. A year ago, you saw me at my worst. But you stuck with me. You had faith in me. So why can't you have faith in yourself?

"You are such a beautiful person, Tifa. You've always put others ahead of yourself. You've always tried to work for the greater good. And now that you're discovering you need to take care of yourself, you're afraid. You shouldn't lose heart, though. It's something that everyone goes through at some point in their lives. For some people though, it's harder."

"Why would I feel a need to take care of myself?" Tifa mumbled, her brown eyes flickering to the ground again. What Cloud was saying made sense, but some parts of the puzzle were still missing. What pushed her off the deep end?

Cloud shrugged. "Have you...ever had a chance to mourn over your father's death, Tifa?"

Tifa stifled a laugh. "I had five years to think about my father's death before I did something about the Shinra. That should have been plenty of time."

Cloud didn't seem pleased with that answer. "You may have thought it over, but have you moved past it?" Pause. "Or Aerith's death?"

Tifa froze. Aerith. The flower girl from the slums. And yet she was so much more than that. In their travels together, they had become great friends. When Sephiroth had killed her...Tifa swallowed hard before finishing the thought. _When I lost her, I lost hope. But I didn't let it show. Instead, I transferred all my hope to Cloud. But I held him too high. He had to mourn the deaths of his friends as well. He couldn't support both of us. _

"Tifa?"

Tifa tensed at the voice, just then realizing that somebody had snuck up behind her. Cloud was still beside her, but now Marlene was behind her. Tifa looked past the girl, seeing a large van. Her other friends were exiting the van. Everyone was there. Barret, Cid, Vincent, Yuffie, Red, Cait Sith, and Denzel. The young woman's brown eyes went back to Marlene after a brief moment. "Yes?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm not hurt," Tifa responded simply. She felt Cloud's eyes on her throughout this whole conversation.

"I didn't ask if you were hurt. I asked if you were okay." _Smart girl, _Tifa thought.

"I will be," she said softly. Marlene stood there for a moment before nodding faintly. The girl turned around and headed over to the van, toward Denzel.

"Did you mean that?" Cloud asked quietly. Tifa turned her head toward him. His blue eyes were full of concern. No, not just concern, but hope. He really did want was best for her. In the depths of his eyes, Tifa could see that he loved her. Surprisingly, she did not shy away from his love. It was at that moment that she knew her answer.

"Yes. I will be okay again. Things will get better. I know they will."

Cloud nodded, a small smile appearing on his lips. He slowly rose to his feet, standing beside her. He extended a hand for her, and she accepted, slipping her hand into his. After rising to her feet, the two of them returned to the group, walking hand in hand. They would fight this battle together.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: A Blast From the Past

Tifa and Cloud came to a stop by the rest of the group. The girl blushed faintly when she saw that everyone was staring at the two of them, at that moment realizing that they were still holding hands. Tifa felt awkward like this, but at the same time, she had no desire to remove her hand from Cloud's. So she kept it there. Yuffie gave her a strange look, almost as if to say "I knew you two were gonna hit it off someday!" Tifa's cheeks turned pinker at the thought, and she lowered her head hoping nobody would notice the change in her.

"Is everyone alright?" Cloud spoke first, the awkward silence not lasting long.

"Yeah, we got rid of those %&!& no problem. Dumb *!&#."

Cloud nodded, that response being what he expected from Cid. Everyone was here, and they were all safe. At least, they were out of harm's way for now. The enemy didn't know where this place was, but they would catch on if they didn't move quickly enough. They needed a course of action, and a plan. And since everyone was looking at him, Cloud figured that he was probably the leader once again. Then again, it was a position he had never fully retired from.

"What's the plan?" Cait Sith asked, voicing Cloud's concerns.

Cloud thought for a moment. The only reason they were really fighting was to safe Tifa. There was no way they could fight this entire war to keep her safe, but what if they went after the Yurak leader? He would be hard to find, but if he was exterminated, then the war would also come to a close. That was really their only option. "We need to go for the leader," Cloud mumbled, still lost in his own thoughts.

Tifa's eyes widened at the concept. Go after the head Yurak? Preposterous! He would be very heavily guarded. They would use up all their strength going through the guard before they reached him. And then he would surely get rid of them by himself, no problem. "That won't work," Tifa said aloud, her voice coming out rushed and nervous. "First of all, it would be impossible to get through his guard. And if we did, we'd be too weak to fight him. He'd kill us by himself and not lose a drop of blood."

"What other options do we have?" Cloud reasoned. "We can't fight an entire war hoping to kill of your enemies as we go through. We need to go directly to the source and end this quickly."

"We'd die!"

"We have a chance of dying no matter what! *$&! it!" Cid yelled. "Now shut ur pie-hole so we can get this done with."

Tifa shot Cid a dirty look, instinctively releasing Cloud's hand. Good thing he didn't do the same, or she would have punched Cid right there and then. Instead, she spoke through her teeth. "Cid, notice how I said 'WE'. WE would die, not just me or somebody else. I'm looking out for YOU right now, believe it or not."

Cid held Tifa's glare, though he did eventually soften his stare. Perhaps Tifa's words had gotten through to him. Either that, or he felt pity for her. After all, the ninjas were targeting her, not him. If he were in her position, he would be much worse than she was.

"Tifa has a valid point," Cloud started. "However, I see it as our only choice." He turned to the black-haired woman beside him. "Do you know where he is?" Cloud's eyes had no insincerity in them, only concern. Tifa could see that he was only doing what he thought was best. Looking at it now, this was really their only option. They could alter the plan later, but they did need to target the leader. Tifa nodded at his question.

"The Southern Caves. It's a man-made mountain range along the sea-line below Fort Condor."

"Isn't Fort Condor home of an anti-Shinra force, willing to fight evil at a moments notice?" Red XIII inquired.

"Not anymore. The Yuraks use it as a prison now. They killed off the resistance and took the place as their own."

Silence fell upon the group. Only Tifa knew the full strength of these Jenova bred soldiers. Nevertheless, she knew the others would find out soon enough. It would take them a few days to reach the old Fort by foot, and then the caves were not far from that. They would see what she meant by the unbeatable strength the Yuraks possessed.

"We need to move, before they find us," Cloud stated simply, taking control of the situation once again. Everyone nodded in agreement, but nobody made a move to leave. So, Tifa did. She took one step away from the group, but Cloud's hand kept her back. Tifa looked back at the blonde man, perplexed as to why he wasn't letting go or following her. "You'll come with me on my bike," he explained to Tifa. "We'll go on ahead and the rest will follow."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Things went very smoothly for this part of the journey. Cloud and Tifa rode ahead of the van the entire way, making sure it was safe for the others to come. They also stopped in several towns along the way to pick up fresh materia. There was no need for them to buy weapons, since their old ones were still in great condition. Tifa figured that everyone must have kept all the items safe in case they ever needed to fight another battle. Like they were about to do.

The group stopped for one night in Healen Lodge (now abandoned by the remaining Shinra) before continuing on their journey. They continued on their path until later that next night, stopping in a forest area. The van was parked in a clearing, which was the only area available for the large vehicle. Still, the trees did not cover them as well as Tifa had hoped. Not only that, but this place was strangely familiar....

"I'll be right back," she told the group. They were all too busy fumbling with tents to pay attention to her, so after a few moments with no responses, Tifa just left. She wasn't planning on doing anything foolish; she just wanted to understand how she knew this place. The young woman walked through the forest, her brown eyes scanning the area. No...now this place looked unfamiliar. However, the open area ahead of her...Tifa picked up the pace, jogging through the trees. She reached the edge of the woods and took a few steps out, gasping when she saw the area lit by the moon.

_This place..._ Tifa felt her heart drop. This was the place where they killed Trent. New emotions rushed to her heart. Regret. Fear. Sorrow. Hopelessness... Deep down inside, Tifa blamed herself for Trent's death. He had stayed to help her, and if she hadn't still been fighting, he would have fled as well. If things had been different, he would still be alive. _And without him..._Tifa swallowed hard at the thought. _He was my light in the darkness. Now my light has been snuffed out, and I have no way of finding the path again. I was so far away from the path in the first place, but with his kindness, he was starting to lead me back. And I lost him. I let him go. I didn't protect him enough... _

A rain drop suddenly fell from the sky, landing on Tifa's nose. It startled her enough to make her jump, bringing her out of her thoughts. What? She looked up at the sky, but it didn't look as if was going to rain that night. Then where did the water droplet come from?

"I sent him to help you," a soft female voice came from in front of her. Tifa slowly lowered her gaze, afraid of what she would see. She was very shocked to see an old, dear friend standing five feet in front of her. The girl from Sector 5 of the Midgar Slums. The flower girl she had befriended so long ago. Aerith. Tifa opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. However, that didn't make a difference in the matter, because Aerith started speaking again. "Trent was sent by me."

Tifa had trouble wrapping her mind around this. "Trent...was..."

Aerith shook her head softly, her bangs moving in and out of her eyes. "No, he was not just a spirit like I am. He was very real."

"Then, how...?"

"I can work in people's hearts, Tifa," Aerith stated softly. "I can lead them to do unthinkable things for other people. That is, if they don't have their guard up and if they are willing to listen."

Tifa stopped speaking then. It was clear that Aerith wasn't talking about Trent anymore, but about her. She had been so unwilling to let anyone in within the past year, and that must have included Aerith's spirit. But—when had that changed? Wasn't she the same person she was two months ago? No, Tifa knew she wasn't. While she was back at home, she had slowly lowered her guard against those people. Aerith must have just been waiting for the right opportunity to come see her. By the way the flower girl stayed silent, Tifa knew she was right in her thinking.

"I've been worried about you," the Cetra said quietly, finally speaking again. "You've given everyone a scare, especially Cloud." Tifa's heart skipped a beat at that name. Cloud had given up everything to help her since the start of this crisis, and it still burdened her that she had given him so much heartache. "He loves you, you know."

Tifa turned away, her eyes lowering to the ground. "Well, of course," she said softly. They had been friends for so long, and close friends did love each other. That was obvious. Yes, that was what Aerith meant. It was the only thing she _could_ mean.

"I didn't mean it like that," Aerith stated. "He **loves** you."

Tifa shook her head softly at that, not willing to fully digest what her friend was saying. "No, that can't be right." The woman looked up. "You're wrong about this, Aerith."

Aerith locked eyes with Tifa, both girls suddenly silent. Tifa saw something behind those green eyes...something she was afraid to see. It was the confidence and wisdom she had always seen in the ancient's eyes. Then she understood something new...Aerith _was_ right. She wouldn't lie about this, which meant that she knew for sure that Cloud really did like Tifa. No, not like...**LOVE**.

Tifa looked away, unable to hold Aerith's stare. She looked over toward a tree, and all of a sudden something caught her eye. Something was shining in the moonlight. Taking a few steps forward, she silently made her way towards the tree. Aerith made no move to stop her, so she knew that she was alright in this movement. Tifa was both confused and frustrated at this fact, remembering how mysterious Aerith was sometimes. It annoyed her when her friend pulled the strings and became controlling, even without trying. But now, it seemed very planned.

The young woman gasped. She recognized this object. She ran the last few steps to reach the tree and then knelt down in front of it. _No, this can't be... _Tifa picked up the object, gently holding it in her hand. A small blue crystal, attached to a piece of string. A necklace. **The** necklace. She stared at the object in stunned silence, her hand trembling slightly as an overwhelming sadness entered her heart. This was Trent's necklace. He always wore it on him. But he couldn't wear it anymore, since he wasn't around. _Trent...is...really gone_, Tifa thought, her eyes shutting tightly.

She couldn't handle this! It was too much heartbreak! There was no hope in this world, nothing to sustain her. This journey was pointless if there was no hope. Sure, there was hope of regaining her old life, but at what cost? At the cost of her friends? Herself? She had already lost herself to her sadness and anger a long time ago. Was there no hope of recovering what she lost?

Tifa clutched the gem tightly, pulling it close to her chest. A single sob escaped her lips, and then the tears started to flow. The tears were not only for herself, but also for her friends. For Trent, who had given his life so that she could live. For Aerith, whom she had lost to her most evil enemy. And now, for Cloud, who was willing to sacrifice anything for her sake. Why? What was she really worth?

"Tifa?"

The black-haired girl brought her head up, turning it slightly to see who had called her. Cloud was approaching. And he was alone. Aerith had disappeared, and in a way, Tifa was glad. There was too much pain with the remembrance of that flower girl. But now Cloud was here instead...and he obviously noticed her distress by her body language and facial expression. Tifa made no move to wipe at her tears, knowing Cloud wouldn't be tricked now. Once he reached her, he knelt down beside her form and looked at her with concern.

"You alright?" he gently brought up a hand, setting it on Tifa's cheek.

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

Tifa remained silent, her brown eyes flickering to the ground. She had yet to open her hand, and for some reason, she didn't plan on opening it any time soon. This charm was connected to her, not Cloud. It was too personal to reveal, as was her conversation with Aerith. Tifa's cheeks warmed at that thought. But the thought also made another tear fall from her eye. This time, she did wipe at it.

"I **am** fine," Tifa stated softly, a certain firmness in her voice. A firmness that hinted that Cloud shouldn't question her any further.

Cloud took the hint and nodded faintly. He knew Tifa very well, and even if this wasn't the same girl he knew a year ago, she did have very similar ways of telling people to back off. And this...this was one of those times. He stayed with her for a few more moments before awkwardly clearing his throat.

"I'm going to head back to camp," he started quietly. "You can come back whenever you're ready."

Tifa nodded softly, her eyes lifting up to meet Cloud's for a moment before returning to the ground. She felt Cloud's hand leave her cheek, and then she heard him leave. After he was completely gone, she let another tear slide down her cheek. She was worrying him so much...and for what? Sure, she didn't mean to worry him, but that was a consequence of her erratic behavior. He didn't deserve this. None of her friends did.

The girl stayed in that area for a little while longer before wiping away the last of her tears. She had no idea how long she had been there; it seemed like an eternity, but it could have been only a few minutes. It didn't matter to Tifa, who was too lost in her sorrow to care about anything so insignificant. Once she was sure the tears were gone, she headed back to the camp. Fortunately, nobody seemed to notice her return. They were all too busy discussing something. They were trying to decide who would keep watch all night. This discussion turned into an argument somehow, but things immediately settled when Tifa volunteered to be the look-out. Cloud did not approve, but in the end, Tifa won.

She stayed up until about four in the morning, and then she fell into a fitful slumber, Nanaki taking over the watch the rest of the night.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Assault

"This is it," Tifa breathed, looking out through her binoculars at the Southern Mountain side. Yuraks dressed in all black patrolled the area, looking very intimidating. There were so many of them! Tifa and her friends had just reached that area five minutes ago, and fortunately, they were unnoticed. At least for the time being, anyway. Because they were located on an elevation and looking down on the valley, there was no way for the Yuraks to spot them. Unless they patrolled the upper lands too. Tifa had uneasy feeling in her stomach knowing that they were about to fight these soldiers.

Cloud, who had been lying on the ground beside her, suddenly rose to his feet. Tifa followed him with her eyes, as did the rest of her friends. He walked over to his motorcycle and pushed one button. His collection of swords appeared, and he grabbed his favorite one. He can't be serious, Tifa thought, her eyes widening. Cloud saw how many men they would have to fight through, and yet he was still leading them down there? It was suicide!

"Let's go," Cloud said. His voice showed determination and powerful leadership, which triggered something in everyone. Everyone rose to their feet, including Tifa. However, Tifa stood up for another reason entirely. And that was to stop this madness.

"Hold on." Red XIII suddenly spoke, surprising Tifa. Perhaps he too saw the nonsense in attacking head on. Maybe, just maybe, there was another way to do this. However, when the animal spoke, his thoughts proved to be very different than Tifa's. "Are we splitting into different parties?"

Parties?! Tifa could have laughed at how stupid that was. There was no way they were going to break through the soldiers even if they were all together, let alone in different groups! The young woman turned her head to Cloud, and she saw that he was considering Red's suggestion. Seriously? Could he not see how threatening this was? It was at that moment that she remembered how little experience her friends had with these enemies. They needed to act in a much different way than they were used to.

"Wait," Tifa broke in before Cloud could respond to Red's question. Everyone turned to look at her. "It would be foolish to just crash in and fight them head on. It would be suicide!"

"What do you suggest?" Cid asked. Surprisingly, he was willing to listen to her. It was a great difference from the other day. Perhaps even cold-hearted Cid could have a change in heart. Then again, maybe he wasn't so cold anymore. She hadn't seen him in over a year...

"Tifa?" Cloud spoke her name, breaking Tifa out of her thoughts. She must have been quiet for a moment too long, since he was giving her a strange look. And by the look in his eyes, he was still concerned over what happened last night.

A faint smirk appeared on Tifa's face. "I have a plan." She went on to explain her idea, and as she went on with the details, she saw the others be more receptive. When she felt their support brewing, she became more confident in her plan. It was original, and surprisingly, she felt as if she were going to have fun with this. In the end, everyone agreed to hold off until night-time to put the plan into action. This was going to go _very_ smoothly if everyone did their part.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"**WHAT?!**" Hiraku hollered at his captain. Hiraku was sitting in the middle of his cave fortress, relaxing with his concubine when his captain came in and gave him some startling news: Their soldiers were being assassinated and killed off. How was he, the all-powerful leader of the Yuraks, supposed to fight a war if he didn't have any soldiers?! "How is this happening??"

The captain shrank back, afraid at his leader's rage. "They have just been disappearing as of late. Blood has appeared on the grounds, but there is no sign of struggle."

Hiraku growled and pounded the armrest of his chair. He had no idea what was happening here, but over the last three nights, they had lost six-hundred soldiers. They had been patrolling the outer caves areas, but now they were very short on men. Only four-hundred remained, and the rest were out on the Western Front.

"Whoever is doing this...I want them taken care of!" he shrieked, his face reddening in anger.

"Y-yes, sir. I'll have the patrol be on high alert from this point on. This will not occur again." The captain quickly dismissed himself, which was a wise move on his part. Hiraku had a reputation of killing his own men when he was enraged.

The leader growled again, blood boiling. If some resistance faction thought they could get away with this, they were very wrong. "Leave!" he suddenly snarled at those who had boldly remained in the room with him. All the women hurriedly left, along with the two other guards who had been standing at the door. Once alone, he abruptly rose to his feet and walked to a table on the right side of the make-shift room.

He snatched a piece of paper off the table and held it up, the lighting in the area sufficient enough for him to see what was on the paper. It was a photo of a young woman with black hair. Well, not a photo, per-se. Rather, it was a sketch of her. One of her soldiers had gotten close enough to her to see her face, and then he had fled and returned to the fortress. Hiraku was glad to finally have an idea of what his enemy looked like. This warrior; the one person who posed a threat to him.

Tifa Lockhart.

"You will be mine," he stated softly. "The day you enter my sight, you will die."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"I can't believe it's actually working," Barret said under his breath, watching the panicked soldiers scan the area more critically than they ever had before. Over the past three nights, everyone from their group had snuck into the area below and secretly killed off many ninjas. Well, everyone except for Denzel and Marlene. Those two stayed at the camp, locked in the van. They didn't travel in groups or even pairs; they were completely alone down there. It was for the best though, because then the Yuraks had no idea what hit them. So many of them had been eliminated over the past few nights that everyone had lost count. Yuffie claimed to have killed off two hundred herself, but everyone recognized the stretch. There was no way they could have killed more than four hundred. At least, that's what they estimated.

Tifa smiled at Barret's comment, the young woman standing beside him on the hill above the Yuraks. Yes, things were working out wonderfully. The scene below was much emptier than it had been before, and Tifa now believed that they had a chance at winning this battle. But only if they went down tonight and took out many more of the soldiers. They weren't in the clear yet. Besides those wandering outside, Tifa had a feeling Hiraku stored back-ups in his lair.

"Teef, how in the world did you come up with this? It's working great!" Tifa smiled at Barret's praise. She shrugged at the question, though, unable to come up with a response. The idea had just kind of come to her. After her war experiences in the past year, she knew many strategies, and using knowledge from that, she easily formulated this plan. It wasn't that big of a deal to her, but all of her friends called it a stroke of brilliance. Even Cloud applauded her for seeing something he couldn't.

"Let's just hope things go well tonight," Tifa finally said. "If we get caught tonight, then everything else will have been a waste. We can't get cocky." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Barret nod. Then they were both silent for a very long time. It was day time now, and they were the only two awake. Everyone else was resting; since they stayed awake late into the night and early morning to be sure there was no danger after their raids were done. Tifa didn't mind being alone with Barret. They were such great friends before, and their bond was strong. Even if Tifa did leave him a year ago, they still had an unbreakable friendship. That was something Tifa really appreciated today.

"Are you excited?" Barret asked.

"About what?"

"Being done with this. It must not be fun, bein hunted an all."

Tifa shrugged again. "We're not home free yet, Barret," she said seriously. "Things can change very quickly at this point. We can't think about things that have yet to come into existence."

Barret nodded faintly, mumbling some kind of agreement. Tifa knew that wasn't the answer he wanted, but it was the only one she could give. As relieving as it was to know that things were probably coming to an end, it was also scary. Because with this end, there was a new beginning. And starting over was a terrifying thought.

"Teef?"

"Mm?"

"I missed you."

Tifa lowered her eyes at that, sadness appearing in her eyes. Yes, of course her best friend had missed her. She had suddenly disappeared, leaving no way to contact her. She had even thrown out her cell phone. Now, however, Cloud had bought her a new one. And he forced her to keep it on her at all times. But that was beside the point now. This was about her and Barret, not Cloud getting her a new phone. How did her thoughts always drift to him...?

"I missed you too," Tifa said softly, leaving her thoughts unsaid. In truth, she had. More than she thought possible, she really had missed Barret. Hmm, she had even missed his bear hugs. Despite his intimidating demeanor, he really was a big lug. He had such a kind heart underneath his rough exterior. She could see how Marlene could break down those walls, and now, Tifa saw that she could do the same. It was something she could do only because of their long relationship. She knew that she should never take advantage of the relationship again.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Barret take a step closer to her. Tifa turned to face him, and by his facial expression, she knew what he was thinking. The young woman stepped forward to meet him with open arms, the two embracing. Two long lost friends, and a sweet reunion. Tifa knew this was going to be her favorite Barret-hug.

They stood in each other's arms for a long time, the rest of the world at peace around them. Tifa felt warmth from his embrace, and it was comforting to know he didn't hate her. She would have been devastated if she had lost his friendship. However, she didn't let her thoughts dwell on that; that was too miserable. Instead, she let herself soften into the embrace and enjoy the comfort it brought. After a while, Tifa started to feel tired. It was a combination of things, including her physical exhaustion from the action lately and the peace she felt in her heart.

"Barret?" she spoke, her voice sounding weak. Her embrace around Barret started to soften, and she felt Barret react the same way. When his eyes met hers, Tifa immediately knew he understood what was happening. He slowly and gently released her, his eyes never leaving hers. Once they were completely apart, Tifa gave him a faint smile. He gave one in return, and it just about made Tifa's heart melt. She wished she could stand there with him longer, but she hadn't gotten much sleep lately, so she really did need to rest. The understanding in Barret's eyes was very comforting to her; it let her know that things were alright.

She turned around and headed towards the nearest tree, which was one of the only spots protected from the sun. Once she sat herself down with her back against the tree, she promptly fell into a dreamless slumber.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Day of Fate (Part 1)

"Tifa. Tifa, wake up," Cloud gently roused the young woman sleeping under the tree. Tifa furrowed her brows slightly, feeling a hand lightly rest on her shoulder. When she finally opened her eyes, she saw Cloud kneeling in front of her, his eyes piercing hers. Even in this lighting, his eyes were as bright as ever. In the darkness, she could still see their radiance. Wait, darkness?! Tifa suddenly became more aware, her eyes scanning the area. Everyone was standing around. A few were looking at her, but the rest were gazing down at the Yuraks.

Nightfall_._ Tifa realized this fact fairly quickly, startled that she hadn't been awoken sooner. Her eyes were slightly wider than usual in anticipation. Hopefully her reflexes wouldn't be too clouded because she had just awakened from her slumber. She set a hand on the ground and started to rise to her feet. Cloud's hand slipped off her shoulder, but his eyes stayed on her the entire time.

"Why didn't you get me up sooner?" Tifa asked, her voice sounding groggy.

"I was concerned about your health. You haven't gotten much rest lately." He paused. "Are you sure you're alright to fight tonight? You don't look too good."

"I'm fine," Tifa said absently, waving off his concern. She still felt tired, but that wasn't going to keep her off the battlefield, that was for sure. "Let's just go,"

Cloud nodded, and then turned his attention to the rest of the group. "Judging by their movement and patrol patterns, they've greatly raised their defense. We need to be very careful tonight." Everyone murmured their agreements as they checked their weapons. Once everyone was prepared, they started to head down on their own. They were still going down as individuals, which was the wisest move they could have made. Tifa was second to last heading down, Cloud leaving right after her. He headed down the same trail she did, then broke off sometime when they were closer to the bottom.

Tifa snuck into the area and hid behind a bush. Every time somebody walked by, she would disable them and then throw them into the wooded area behind her. However, once she was there for a long time and nobody else came, she realized she must have finished off everyone who was supposed to patrol that area. So she went on the move, knocking out other ninjas in her general area. Things were going wonderfully for such a long time, that Tifa figured tomorrow night they would hunt down Hiraku.

_Flash!_ A high-beam came on, illuminating the ground. But it wasn't targeted at Tifa; it was on an area to her right.

"Hunt the imbecile who is eliminating out people!" a battle cry came from the entrance of one of the caves, a general apparently leading his people. Tifa jumped behind a group of trees, watching in horror as they all charged past her toward the lit-up area. No! They were going for one of her friends! Tifa suddenly felt enraged, and she charged out of her bush, ambushing the final line of soldiers. She took out five easily before the rest of the ninjas turned around and saw her.

"What?!" the general cried out. "It's the infidel! Attack HER! Forget about the other girl."

"_Girl",_ Tifa thought. _They must have seen Yuffie. Heh, some ninja she is... _Tifa took a step back, fists raised as she prepared herself for a hard battle. There must have been fifty Yuraks surrounding her already, and she was sure there were more on the way. But she also had hope that her friends were on the way. A group charged at her, but she quickly swatted them off. One of them dropped a sword, and she picked it up, making a move of swinging in the air to scare off her foes.

"Come on!" she cried, rushing the nearest ninja. Before he knew what hit him, he was shredded to bits. A few more came in at her, and she had trouble dispatching them. She winced when a blade cut her upper arm, then another weapon impacting her leg. She fell back, but quickly picked herself back up. Unstable on her feet, she knew she couldn't fight them off physically at that moment. A materia started to glow in her arm as she pulled back her hand. Three fiery bolts shot out of her hand, impacting nearly all of her enemies. Those were not impacted stepped back in fear and shock. While they were distracted, Tifa sent one more high into the sky. She understood that it would attract more enemies, but it would also let her friends know where to come.

One ninja recovered exceedingly quickly and charged forward, but Tifa merely grabbed his arm and spun him around. Once the speed was built up, she chucked him at a group that was just starting to rise to their feet. Three more charged at her, and she grunted in disbelief when she realized she couldn't defend herself against them. She did the only thing she could do; she jumped backwards, landing in a tree. Instead of letting them gawk at her quick movement, she leapt down on them again, taking out the three that had gone for her in the first place.

Tifa stood still for a moment, scanning the area around her. It was then that she noticed they had formed a circle around her. In the background, she heard guns being loaded. They had no intention of letting her make it out alive.

Gunshots sounded around her, and she instinctively cowered to avoid any bullets. But they were not aimed for her. The ninjas surrounding her crumbled, most dying right away. The others lost their lives when the earth beneath them started to quake with such ferocity that it swallowed them up.

The young woman rose to her feet, eyes wandering. Barret was two steps away, gun aimed upward at the caves. That was the location of the gunmen. He fired away at them, his rage coming out in a growl. He hated to see Tifa hurt and endangered. To her left, Tifa noticed Red XIII arriving with Cait Sith on his back.

"You alright, lass?!" Cait Sith asked over the gunshots. He looked up at her, concern in his large cat eyes.

"Don't worry about me," Tifa said simply. "Worry about them." She pointed to in front of them. More Yuraks were joining the battle. Red and Cait Sith looked at her a moment longer before turning forward, charging at the group. Tifa ran moments after them, hurrying to catch up. While running, two more people came along side of her. Yuffie and Cid. They both had more energy than she, so they made it to the group before she did.

Tifa finally arrived at the mass of Yuraks, taking down four of them in one combo move. Then even more came at her at once, nearly knocking her off her feet. The battle was so biased! Nearly all of the ninjas were going for her, not her friends. Sure, she was glad her friends weren't in as great of danger as she was, but if this continued, she wasn't going to survive the battle! There were too many going against her at once, and she was losing energy quickly.

A heavy weapon swung into her stomach, causing her a great deal of pain. Not only that, but it also sent her flying backwards. She had no control over her body as she soared through the air. Pain exploded from her head when she landed, her head banging against a tree. Her vision blackout for a moment, and she fought to regain consciousness of where she was. _Come on_, she thought to herself, gritting her teeth at the pain. She blinked a few times, the blackness finally disappearing. Just in time to see a bunch of Yuraks charging towards her. Her other friends were still caught up in their own battles, being distracted from a great issue here.

Tifa grabbed onto a low tree branch, bringing herself back to her feet as quickly as she could. But it was too late; she was already surrounded. Her legs gave out from underneath her, and she shakily fell to her knees. She put out her hands to catch herself before she fell on her face. A sick feeling entered her stomach when she realized she would either die here or she would be so seriously wounded she would wish for death.

The girl gritted her teeth together in frustration. How could she even think that?! She wasn't giving up without a fight! She pushed up with her hands, coming onto only her knees now. The ninjas around her were raising their weapons. Tifa clenched one of her hands in a fist, another materia glowing in her arm. Bolts of lightning rained down on her opponents, the electricity so strong in them that they all either fell and lost their lives or stepped back. While they were distracted, Tifa broke through the back line, defeating the two ninjas that stood in her way. Then she escaped into the forest. She ran as quickly as she could, determined to get out of the battle for a moment to pull herself together. Fortunately, she didn't hear anybody running after her.

A minute later, she broke through the woods, into a clearing. She gasped for air as she fell to her knees, weakness overtaking her. Several of her wounds were bleeding, and she was just plain exhausted. She let her eyes fall shut as she cast cure on herself, using up what remained of her magic. Relief immediately came to her, refreshing her. She sighed softly, feeling the pain start to weaken; however, it was still there. That is, until a few moments later. A tingling feeling spread throughout her body and the aches disappeared almost completely. She opened her eyes in surprise.

A young man was approaching her. Spiky hair, big sword...Cloud. Tifa put a hand on the ground and stood up again. She felt Cloud's hand on her shoulder almost immediately afterwards. "You okay?" he asked, his voice sounding frantic. Tifa nodded. She was now, since she had a chance to cure herself of her aches. And Cloud had cast cure as well; that was the second healing she had felt.

Tifa suddenly heard a series of battle cries. Her eyes widened when she saw a bunch of Yuraks swarm the area. She prepared herself for battle, but then Cloud's hand tightened on her shoulder. He pulled her behind him and raised his sword. His body began to glow faintly, and Tifa knew that he was about to use a limit break. She lowered her hands and nodded faintly, silently letting Cloud know that she understood what was happening. She took in a deep breath and shut her eyes. Moments later, the sounds of battle entered her ears. Then it stopped very abruptly. She opened her eyes, seeing Cloud standing a few yards away. All the ninjas around her were defeated.

Then Tifa saw one start to crawl away. Before Cloud could take the initiative, she stepped forward. She leaned down and harshly grabbed him by the top of his shirt. "Where's Hiraku?!" she snapped, shoving him into a tree. The ninja only laughed. She brought her other hand to his neck, clenching it lightly. "Answer me! Or your death will be a slow and painful one."

"Hehe, I don't believe you have that kind of power."

Tifa smirked. "Please. Hiraku has the nerve to send all his ninjas after me, and I have no power? Where's the logic in that?" The ninja's eyes darkened. "If you don't answer me, I will break every, single bone in your body. I'm sure it'll be agonizing."

"No, no please!" the Yurak cried. "He's in an abandoned farmhouse. To the east of the mountain range. It's a fifteen minute sprint from here."

"Is he alone? Does he have more men with him?"

"O-only a few. But they are his finest assassins."

Tifa paused. "Does he know we're coming?"

"Most likely."

Surprisingly, Tifa believed him. A man wasn't going to lie when he was so afraid of pain. This was obviously a rookie. A full-fledged ninja would not betray his master. The girl brought her hand off his neck and punched him hard on his chin. The Yurak crumbled and she released her grip on his shirt, taking a step back away from the body.

"What now?" Tifa turned at the voice, recognizing it as Vincent's. The vampire was standing alongside Cloud, along with all her other friends. Apparently every other Yurak in the area had been taken care of. Tifa locked eyes with Cloud, but he still did not say a word. It was then that she realized that he was allowing her to take over the leadership of this mission. He too understood how superior her knowledge was when it came to these people.

"We leave. We run straight for the farmhouse and finish this. For good."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Day of Fate (Part 2)

Tifa ran in the middle of the pack all the way to the farmhouse. Red XIII led the group, since he was naturally the quickest out of all of them. In what felt like no time at all, they reached the farmhouse. Everything was awkwardly silent. There was no sign of anyone, not Hiraku, not his Yuraks. It was at that moment Tifa wondered if the ninja was lying.

However, the arrow that soared through the air and almost pierced her heart made her consider otherwise. Fortunately for her, Cloud swatted the arrow away with one swing of her sword. Vincent shot a single bullet into the night, killing the man who had shot the arrow. So, Hiraku really was there. Tifa clenched her fist in anger, the girl staring at the entrance to the barn. Finally. Finally, she could finish this off. She could get rid of Hiraku and protect all those innocent people who found meaningful things to do with their lives. Her friends could return to their former lives. She would no longer be hunted. She ran to the door, her friends close behind.

With one kick, Tifa brought down the doors. She rushed in first, followed by the others. _Wow, they're really taking this leadership thing seriously,_ Tifa thought in the back of her mind. Even more than that though, her heart was beating in anticipation to what was hopefully going to happen here. Hiraku was about to die. The opening room was empty, but there was another door straight ahead. She ran for that, then broke it down in the same manner as the first one.

Once they all entered the room, they were promptly greeted by ten Yurak assassins, as promised by the apparently-truthful ninja from earlier. Three came for her, and then the others fought off the remaining seven. In the start, they had all been targeting her, but they couldn't get too close; her friends had created a barrier around her to keep her safe.

Tifa Lockhart knocked out the last ninja with a hard punch. She heard a groan (not unusual during a battle) but this groan made her heart skip a beat. One of her comrades had been hurt. She hurriedly turned around, forgetting about everything except her friend. Barret had a hand around his stomach, and he looked in pain. Tifa felt a surge of panic run through her, then anger. Nobody hurt Barret. Despite the fact that Tifa had always looked to him as a protector, she now felt a need to protect him.

A malevolent chuckle reverberated throughout the room, making Tifa tense. Her brown eyes wandered upward, and she saw an enemy standing on a pile of crates. Not just any ordinary enemy, but the worst of them all. It was the man she hated nearly as much as she hated Sephiroth. Hiraku.

She gritted her teeth together and walked forward, her eyes never leaving that man. The Yurak leader raised his hand, but nothing appeared to happen. However, Tifa was very wrong. A faint shimmering noise entered her ear, and she turned around just in time to see a barrier appear. It separated her from her friends. And more importantly, it left her alone with Hiraku. _That coward,_ she thought viciously. He didn't have the courage to fight them all at once, so now he was going to eliminate Tifa and then target the others. It was a great strategy; too bad he was the enemy.

Hiraku smiled warmly, like a wolf in sheep's clothes. He jumped down from the boxes, his landing very graceful. "It is good to finally see you in person, Tifa Lockhart."

Tifa clenched a fist. So, this man really did know who she was. That meant he also knew about how she the most powerful Rebk out there. What else did this imply? How long had he been watching her...? The implications pierced her heart, making her feel a surprising sense of fear.

"Still, I am disappointed all the same. You were supposed to have been killed months ago. How you managed to escape alive, I do not know. But it will not be happening today. Today, you will die and be with your fallen comrades in the Lifestream. And soon, I will rule over all of you and control this planet, as Jenova has commanded me to."

Tifa gritted her teeth together in frustration and shock. The ambush that killed Trent...it was probably her fault. They were going for her, but Trent had stepped in and they had gotten rid of him. "**SHUT UP**!" she suddenly screamed, running forward. A moment before her fist would have reached his chin, he grabbed her wrist. Tifa gasped at his strength, that one movement stopping her completely. He chuckled, then threw her backwards. She rolled on the ground several times before coming to a stop.

"Tifa?!" Cloud yelled frantically. He stood helplessly behind the barrier, one of his hands on the translucent wall. This was torturous for him, having to stand by the sidelines and watch Tifa be in danger. In other situations, it had been a little better because he could protect her from harm. But now...

The girl rose to her feet, unharmed. "I'm fine," she said absently, speaking over her shoulder. She glared at Hiraku in anger. "He was just toying with me." Hiraku grinned. "Tell me Hiraku, why are you doing things this way? Wouldn't it have been easier just to have your men stalk me through the woods a few months ago and kill me in my sleep?" She needed to buy some time; that barrier couldn't stand forever.

"This will be much more pleasant for me to do myself. I have waited for this day for a long time, Ms. Lockhart." Tifa shivered at the way he said her name. "Enough of this." Hiraku raised his fists. "We will fight. Now." Perhaps he too realized his wall wouldn't keep Cloud and the others out forever. Tifa realized she had no options but to fight as Hiraku wanted her to. Either she could flee and buy more time (which would leave her more vulnerable to his attacks), or she could fight. She went with the second option.

Both of them charged forward and the fight began. They were both going fist to fist, thank goodness. If Hiraku had been using his trademark sword, then Tifa would have been doomed. However, she probably was doomed either way. He wasn't the Yurak leader for nothing. He could take her down very easily if she wasn't careful with her fighting. Tifa threw caution to the wind as she fought, using all her strength to fight him off. And surprisingly, she wasn't doing badly. He wasn't getting many blows in, but then again, neither was she. It appeared they were an even match. Unless he was playing with her again...

A few minutes into the battle, they both broke away from each other. Tifa gasped raggedly, trying to catch her breath. She heard Hiraku catch his breath as well, but he didn't seem nearly as winded as Tifa. _This battle isn't going as well as I had hoped_, Tifa thought. Oh well, she wasn't going to give in. She ran forward again, this time coming up with a new strategy. There was a crowbar lying on the ground a few feet behind Hiraku. If she could just get a hold of that, it would help her. At least for the time being.

Hiraku raised his arms in defense, not seeing that her sight rested elsewhere. She leapt over top of him, landing right by the crowbar. The girl spun around and charged at his exposed back. The weapon impacted him with such great force that he flew forward a few feet. However, he didn't stay off balance. So she attempted the same move again. But he was prepared for it. He turned around and snatched the weapon out of her hands before she even knew what happened. Then he knocked her over the head with it.

Tifa's vision swam as she fell down, legs collapsed underneath her. _Get up, get up!_ she screamed internally. However, her body wouldn't respond. She felt Hiraku grab onto her white shirt, and then she felt nothing as she soared through the air. A loud thudding sound brought her out of her daze, as well as the pain of impacting a bunch of metal crates.

"Tifa!" Cloud cried frantically.

"Cloud, what we gonna do?!" Barret asked, panic in his voice. The burly man had let go of his stomach a long time ago, too engrossed in the battle to care about the ache he felt. He, like Cloud, saw what bad shape Tifa was in.

Cloud composed himself quickly, knowing that getting worked up was not going to help anyway. "Knock down the wall. Now!" He swung his hefty sword at the barrier. The wall didn't fade for even a second. But since it was his only option at that moment, he tried again. "Come on!"

The sound of metal clanging entered her ears as Tifa shakily rose to her feet. It was her friends, using their weapons to try and break down the wall. The girl didn't focus on that. Instead, she turned her eyes forward again. Hiraku was standing about ten feet away, hands empty. Apparently he decided to get rid of the crowbar and just beat her in a fist fight. As comforting as it was to see him weaponless, Tifa still knew this was a fight she could not win in. Unless Cloud and the others broke down that wall. She could buy them more time. "I'm counting on you," she whispered into the air. The girl suddenly raised her fists again and charged for Hiraku.

Cloud's eyes widened when he saw Tifa get back into the action so quickly. She had taken so many blows already; he had no idea what gave her the strength to continue on. The blonde-haired man swung at the barrier for what must have been the fiftieth time, though his eyes stayed on the fighting girl. She was combating brilliantly, not even using materia yet still dealing critical blows. He was impressed. After this was over, he would have to tell her that.

"It isn't working!" Yuffie shouted in anguish. Cloud was just about to swing his sword again, but then he realized that she was right. He lowered his blade and turned to his comrades, who had also stopped in their attempts to break the barrier.

"Find another way out! Look for a weak point," he commanded. The others all spread out throughout the enclosed area and started to work on new areas. Cloud, however, continued to work on his area. He hoped that with persistence, the wall would break. His arms swung the hefty blade again, but his attention was focused on Tifa. She looked so worn out. Multiple wounds appeared on her body. How much longer could she take this abuse...?

Tifa unleashed a battle cry as she kicked Hiraku hard in the stomach. The vulnerable man flew backwards, into his own barrier. Tifa was tempted to release a shout in success, but she knew Hiraku would be back on his feet soon. And sure enough, he stood right back up, hardly phased from her attack. Hiraku reached for a dagger in his pocket and threw it straight for Tifa, but he missed, only because of her quick reflexes.

The woman did an extra back flip before stopping, balanced now that she had a brief moment to recover. She was panting heavily now, sweat coating her trembling body. Fighting this way wasn't working; she had to come up with a new strategy. Her eyes scanned the room, but she saw nothing to assist her. The only thing that she saw now was Hiraku charging at her. Tifa growled softly, curling her hand into a fist before running toward her enemy.

Something hung from his side, something she hadn't noticed before. A sword in its hilt. It was then that Tifa knew what she had to do. Moments before they would have collided, Tifa flipped over her opponent. But not without reaching down and grabbing the sword out of his hilt. She landed gracefully and quickly turned around, sharp blade in her hand. Hiraku stopped and glared at her, shocked and angered that his sword had been stolen. Tifa smirked. There had just been a change in the tide. Before Hiraku could react, Tifa charged him again. She cleared the space between them within a second of starting her spring, giving Hiraku absolutely no chance to move. The sword cut right through him, and Tifa was oddly relieved to hear his scream of pain. Never before had she felt so good about hurting an enemy.

"You'll pay," Hiraku grunted, grabbing his stomach in discomfort. "I swear, you will pay."

"Not today." Tifa ran at him again, this time cutting through his chest in a way that formed an "X". Or, depending on how you looked at it, it could have been a "T" for "Tifa".

Hiraku moaned, but he still stood. He was an extremely strong opponent. Perhaps he was not as powerful as Sephiroth, but he was still a force to be reckoned with. The man flexed his hand and a dark aura started to radiate around his side. Tifa took a defensive position, sword in front of her in case she had to deflect an attack. But, to her surprise, he wasn't going to send another projectile towards her. A sword formed in his hand. Tifa stood in stunned silence. She knew the Yuraks had powerful witchcraft, but she had never seen a form quite like this...

A battle cry entered her ears, and Tifa saw a blurred figure rushing towards her. She gasped and leapt into the air, only avoiding the sword by a fraction of an inch. She landed on a set of crates, but she didn't stay there long. Leaping off the boxes, she descended on Hiraku. If he hadn't moved, she would have landed right on top of him. Angered that she had missed her target, she swung her sword at him. He dodged it. Again, she swung at him. Again he dodged.

Then, at the same time, they both went to attack each other. Their swords collided, and they both fought to press down harder on each other's blades.

"Fool," Hiraku gasped. "This battle is meaningless. My power still surpasses yours and the power of your friends. What hope to you have to win?"

"You're gaping like a fish and bleeding as well, Hiraku," Tifa replied smugly.

Hiraku chuckled. "Perhaps. But your strength is not your own; you are fighting out of rage. That eventually depletes your strength. Is it because of your friend? What was his name...Travis? No no, it was Trent..."

"Shut it, you son of a..." Tifa murmured the last part, suddenly feeling weak at the name of Trent. She was fighting for him, but she was also fighting for herself. And her friends. And for the future. All these were reasons for fighting. She wouldn't let Hiraku make her feel small for this.

"What's wrong, girl? Did I hit a sore spot?" Hiraku smirked, egging on Tifa. "Are you--"

"I fight for my friends. And for the future!" Tifa snapped. "But you will pay for what you've done..."

"Then your friends will be disappointed at the end of the day. For this is a fight that you will never win." Hiraku suddenly pressed down hardly on Tifa's sword, knocking her back. Tifa blinked in surprise, then reacted just in time to feel Hiraku's blade against hers again. But this time, it was not a stalemate. He knocked her several times, forcing her to back up to deflect the blows. A well placed kick hit her in the stomach, sending her backwards. Then the sword was knocked out of her hand and a hard blow impacted her head. Tifa's vision went fuzzy and unfortunately for her, she couldn't see Hiraku's oncoming fist. He punched her square on the chin and kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying.

Tifa impacted the ground hard, a grunt escaping her. It was obvious to her that Hiraku was running on the last of his energy, as was she. Speaking of last energy...Her body began to glow with a faint blue tinge. It was time for her limit break. Her eyes locked onto Hiraku, who was clearly surprised at the turn of events. She smirked as she picked herself up and charged forward. The fists started flying as soon as they were in range of each other, but only hers landed solid blows. She was so powered up, it was impossible for him to do anything. After one final kick in the groin, she jumped backwards, levitating in the air for a few moments. Her arms started to glow with materia, and all of a sudden bursts of magic rained down on Hiraku. Fire, wind, water...every element imaginable now impacted the Yurak leader.

Tifa fell back to earth, her landing not as graceful as it normally was due to the fact that she was exhausted. She landed on one knee, her back towards Hiraku. And she was facing Cloud and the others, who had gone silent. The young woman turned to look over her shoulder. Hiraku laid still on the ground, unmoving. At least for the time being, Tifa realized. Realistically, she couldn't expect him to stay down. He was so strong; he would probably regain consciousness within the next few minutes.

Tifa picked herself up quickly, also grabbing the dagger off the floor. She needed to finish this. **Now**. Her feet carried her over to Hiraku quickly, and she hesitated for one brief moment. Killing humans didn't come easily to her. _He's not human; he's a monster,_ Tifa reasoned. _He's out to kill the innocent. Like Denzel and Marlene. _

That was enough motivation for Tifa.

She knelt down in preparation to stab him in the back, the dagger firmly in her hand. Just as she went in for the kill, a hand stopped her. It grabbed her wrist. She gasped in shock; Hiraku had never been unconscious. Suddenly he kicked her, making her collapse to her knees. Then a hand grabbed onto her shirt and Hiraku threw her hard, her limbs flailing as she flew through the air. She hit the barrier exceedingly hard, then slid down to the ground.

"NO!" she heard Cloud's scream enter her ears. He must have been right behind her to have been that loud. But his voice still sounded like it was faded. It seemed softer than it should have. Tifa shook it off, hair down in her eyes. She wasn't giving up, not now, not ever. She started rising to her feet, but it was taking an extremely long time to do so. Even when she fell back down to one knee it felt slower than usual.

_He cast slow on me, _Tifa realized numbly. Staring at the ground, she suddenly heard footsteps coming towards her, and she knew it was Hiraku coming to finish the job. Since she was sluggish now, she couldn't even defend herself. What a humiliating death; fighting so hard for so long only to be killed off because a spell prevented her from moving. The only hope she had left was hope that death wouldn't be too painful. But then again, it couldn't be much more painful than what she was already experiencing.

A loud crashing noise suddenly entered her ears, and Tifa winced. The noise was followed by a scream. Hiraku?

Tifa opened her eyes just in time to Hiraku fly into the air, and then get knocked back down when a man intercepted him mid air. The mysterious man kicked Hiraku right in the back, instantly breaking his spin. Tifa winced once again when Hiraku landed. It was such a painful crash, and she had no doubt Hiraku felt even worse than she. The stranger landed and pulled a dagger out of a case to his side. He stabbed Hiraku in the back, doing what Tifa couldn't do.

The girl forced herself up, still lying down but resting on her hands now as she stared up at the man. She didn't understand...she didn't know who this person was. Or did she? He seemed strangely familiar...But she didn't know anybody who would dress in pure white like that. And the hood of his sweatshirt covered his face, so it was impossible for her to distinguish who he was.

And then he turned to her, pulling the hood off the top of his head. Tifa stared at the face that was revealed, totally awestruck.

"T-Trent?" Tifa gasped, pain evident in her voice. She tried to pick herself up again, but she wasn't strong enough to stand up yet. But she wasn't going to stop trying; not with Trent here. How he was there, she didn't know. Either way, he was there. Perhaps he was going to take her with him, to a world without pain...

"Tifa? Tifa! Stay with me!" Trent's urgent voice entered her ears, and Tifa realized she must have dazed off. Or was that Cloud's voice? She couldn't tell at the moment, too tired to care. No matter what the case was, the voice brought her out of her daze. Even more than that, she felt something against her lips, and that stunned her enough for her to open her eyes again. It was an elixir bottle. The liquid poured down her throat, a tingling sensation running through her body. She swallowed the drink, her eyes staying open this time. It was at that moment she realized that she was sitting up partway, and she was in Trent's arms. He was kneeling down beside her, holding that bottle to her lips. She blushed in embarrassment; he had never seen her at such a weak level.

Trent looked Tifa tenderly, concern in his eyes. "You okay, sweetheart?" he asked, lowering the bottle. Tifa blushed even more at this comment; that was a nickname he had used on her during their time fighting together. It sure did bring back memories. Not just bad ones, surprisingly, but good ones. Their friendship had been much stronger than Tifa had first suspected.

"I'm alright." _I just really miss you._

"You still look a little green. Here, why don't you try to stand up?" _Why can't we just stay together here? I'm alright now that you're here. _

Tifa had little trouble rising to her feet, knowing that Trent was holding her hand and there to support her at any given time. As soon as she was upright, she did collapse slightly from tiredness, but not pain. Trent was right there to catch her. Tifa wrapped one arm around him, leaning into her friend for support.

"Trent," Tifa said weakly.

"Try not to talk, sweetheart. I know how tired you are."

"...You're not staying with me, are you?" _Please, __**please**__ say yes..._

Trent shook his head. "No, I can't. Not this time."

"Why not?" Tifa asked innocently, a sense of naïveté coming through. "You're here now; why can't you stay?"

"I don't belong here anymore," Trent replied softly, gently brushing some of Tifa's hair out of her eyes. "I've done what needed to be done."

Tifa shook her head, setting it against Trent's shoulder. Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke a simple sentence. "I still need you."

"Tifa...I'm still with you," he stated tenderly. "Even if you can't see me, just remember what's important. It's who you are. And how you work through the hard times. The tragedies are what turned you into the person you are today. But even through those terrible things..." he lifted her chin so she was looking at him. "There is still hope."

The brown-eyed girl nodded faintly. Looking into Trent's eyes, she did believe that. Some part of her accepted the things that had passed. Perhaps she was ready for the future. But for now, she held onto Trent. She wanted to stay in his arms for at least a few more moments, because things were finally making sense with him there. He allowed her to hold on, knowing that she needed another moment of reassurance. The time they spent standing there was such a relief to Tifa, but eventually, their time came to an end.

"I have to go," he whispered. Tifa only nodded. She slowly released him, and he did the same with her. He held onto her shoulders one last time and looked down into her eyes. "Don't forget what's important to you. And don't let go of anything worth value. Okay?" Tifa nodded. Trent abruptly let go of her and turned to leave. There was a break in the barn wall that Tifa had failed to notice earlier. That was apparently the place where Trent had come from, and it was now the place he was exiting.

However, he stopped right in front of the wall instead of exiting right away as Tifa had expected. The spiky-haired man turned around and fixed his gaze on another person. Not Tifa, but Cloud, who was standing five feet away from Tifa alongside all his friends. The barrier was gone now, but all her friends stood a distance away, probably knowing she needed a moment with the stranger.

"Watch out for her," Trent told Cloud. His voice was very serious, but the tone was one of care for Tifa. "I'm leaving her in your care." He disappeared through the hole, and that was that.

Tifa stared at the hole for a few more moments, lost in her thoughts. Trent had known exactly what she needed to hear, and he had said it all. Except for one thing...And that was goodbye. Tifa wasn't ready to say goodbye completely yet. But that wasn't up to her; Trent was already gone. Tifa's eyes widened in recognition, sadness filling her heart. _I didn't get to say goodbye..._

"Wait!" Tifa suddenly cried, rushing forward. She ran as quickly as she could to the broken wall, but froze when she arrived there. Looking outside, there was no sign of Trent; absolutely none. Tifa fell to her knees. _I was too late. _Tears flooded her eyes, threatening to fall at any second. Her friend was gone, and she would never see him that way again. Sure, he was in her heart, but she still felt awfully alone knowing he was physically gone.

"Tifa," the sound of her name sounded alien in her ears, the girl feeling a bit too dazed to respond. A hand appeared on her shoulder; Cloud's hand. She allowed it to rest there, all her emotions having been used up in the past hour. "We should leave now," Cloud stated softly. Tifa only nodded. Yes, she supposed it was time to leave. She didn't really want to, but she also knew Cloud wasn't going to allow her to grieve right there and then. He understood better than she how tired she was and how that was going to affect her emotions.

The girl finally found the will to rise to her feet, but even the strongest will couldn't keep her standing. She was far too exhausted from the battle and its aftermath to have the strength to stand on her own. So, just as she did with Trent, Tifa leaned into Cloud for support. He supported her small body as he half-led half-dragged her over to their other friends. Once they were with the group, they all left together. Back to the campsite. Then, after they got their rest, they could continue life's journey.

They would walk it together this time. Tifa didn't want to travel alone. For she had learned that not only was it alright to lean on somebody else for support, but it was also a part of life. Friendship is the greatest sweetener of life, and no friendship was sweeter than what she had with Cloud. And the fellowship she had with her other friends as well. She had walked away before, and now she was making a promise to herself and to her friends.

Never again would she walk away from what was important to her.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Blame

_A week later..._

Tifa stood calmly on the cliff she had visited in the past week, the surroundings very familiar to her. This wasn't just some random place she picked to think; it was also the place where Cloud kept the Buster Sword. _I never did hear the story of that,_ Tifa mused, her eyes wandering to that weapon for a brief moment. _Eh, it's probably nothing exciting. _She turned her attention back to the skyline.

It had been a week since the night at the farmhouse with Hiraku. In a way, it felt like it was an eternity ago. But at the same time, it was very fresh in Tifa's mind. She couldn't get Trent out of her thoughts, either. All the things that he had said...they stuck with her. However, she still wasn't sure how to fulfill what he requested of her. How could she just forget all the wrong in the world? It didn't seem like a simple task.

_Maybe it isn't about forgetting. Maybe it's about accepting that things happen_. Tifa scoffed at the idea. How was she supposed to accept that her father was killed by Sephiroth? And what about Aerith? She didn't deserve to die. Tifa didn't understand why terrible things had to happen; Sephiroth had deserved to die for his treachery, but Aerith and her father hadn't committed any sin.

Tifa sighed softly, kneeling down next to the large sword. She was so tired of this. She was so tired of running away from everything, that she was finally trying to sort things out. But even then...the answers weren't coming. Someday soon though, she was going to figure out what everything meant. She'd find a way to live her life even when the terrible things were happening around her. There was hope for the future.

"Oh, Miss Lockhart!"

Tifa furrowed her brows, her hand curling into a fist. Not again. For the past week, Tifa had been trying to escape a rush of reporters who credited her for ending the war. She may have fought and weakened Hiraku, but nobody knew all of it. Only her friends knew, and the reporters didn't care about what they had to say. They only targeted Tifa. Surprisingly, they were only now finding the place where she went to escape it all. The young woman got off her knees and turned around, her eyes scanning the area. There were so many reporters, practically one from each news station in the Edge. Tifa sighed; this was going to be annoying.

The reporters rushed her, cameras flashing brightly as the voices all mixed together. Tifa instinctively took one step back, but she was quickly surrounded by all the reporters and their crews.

"Tifa, how did you defeat Hiraku?" One reporter inquired.

"How did you find the location of the Yurak leader?"

"Is it true that Hiraku is the reincarnation of Sephiroth?"

"Will the rest of the Yuraks come out of hiding someday?"

"What kind of conditioner do you use?" Tifa arched a brow at the question, her brown eyes finding that odd reporter. Apparently everyone else wondered who would ask that question as well, because they all turned toward the strange man and stared at him in stunned silence. He had a sheepish smile on his face.

A roaring sound entered her ears, and Tifa looked past the reporters and out at the open land in front of her. A small smile appeared on her face as she stared at an oncoming vehicle. It came closer and closer, not slowing down despite the fact that it was nearing the crowd.

"Look out!" one reporter cried, realizing the motorcycle wasn't going to stop for them. He ran off to the side, most of the reporters and crews following his lead.

Tifa took one step back, the bike skidding to a halt right in front of her. The rider didn't wear any goggles, and his blue eyes shone brightly as he looked at Tifa. His blond spiked hair wasn't even ruffled from the wind. Tifa smirked faintly, wondering how exactly that worked.

"Looks like you could use an escape," Cloud commented, a smile appearing on his lips as he gazed at Tifa. The young woman only nodded, her small smile widening at his statement. "Well then, come on," he encouraged, extending a hand. Tifa slipped her hand into his without hesitation, climbing onto the bike behind him. Before the reporters could recover from their state of shock, the two had already sped off.

Tifa wrapped her arms around Cloud more tightly, the wind rushing by her. She hardly ever got a chance to ride with Cloud like this, and each time she forgot just how strong the wind was. The only way to avoid it was to use Cloud's body as a shield. A relaxed breath left her lips as she leaned forward, her head resting against Cloud's back. She didn't mind being closer to him, and she was sure he felt the same.

The two had been riding for only a few minutes when Cloud brought them to a gentle stop. Tifa slowly released her friend as she opened her eyes, scanning the area. Awe overtook her as she looked around; Cloud had brought her to a grassy meadow. And in the flowers, there was a plaid blanket laid out. On top of that, there was a picnic basket.

"C-Cloud?" Tifa stuttered, releasing him all together as she started to get off the bike.

The blonde man chuckled. "I wasn't hoping we would come here in these circumstances," he started. "But I'm glad we're here anyway. And while we're here--" he took a few steps forward and picked up the basket. "--would you like some lunch?"

Tifa laughed at his adorable facial expression. "I'd love that," she responded, approaching the blanket. Her eyes only left Cloud's when she looked down to set herself on the ground. The earth was so soft. The comfortable atmosphere around her made her forget all her troubles and the annoyances of life. At that moment, the only thing that mattered was her and Cloud.

"I brought ham sandwiches," Cloud said, handing one to Tifa.

"Mm, my favorite," Tifa smiled, taking it out of Cloud's hand.

"I know; that's why I packed those." Tifa's smile widened at that statement.

"Um, thank you," the girl said after a moment, her cheeks reddening.

Cloud shrugged. "Making sandwiches isn't that big of a deal."

"No...I mean...thank you, for the sandwiches too, but really...thank you for getting me away from the reporters earlier. I can never seem to get rid of them myself."

Cloud's eyes softened at the change of subject. "No problem." He set a hand on her knee and gave it a gentle squeeze. Tifa's heart skipped a beat_. I gotta say something, or I'm going to start being extremely shy again,_ she decided mentally.

"Why do reporters have to be so obnoxious?" Tifa wondered aloud, that being the only comment she could think of to make the awkward silence disappear.

"Because they want what they can't have. They want to know what happened that night and get a juicy story." Pause. "Me though, I just want to know what happened," he stated more softly. Tifa looked away. She never had explained who Trent was. "Would you please let me know what's going on?" There was no demand in his voice, only gently prompting. Tifa decided to be honest with him and just say it; it would be quick and painless.

"The guy that rescued me is named Trent. I travelled with him when I was with the Debks. He always was watching out for me in battles and everything."

"You were...close?"

Tifa nodded faintly. "He was a great friend," she started softly. "Too bad I didn't realize it until it was too late."

"'Too late'?"

"Trent was killed in an ambush a couple months ago. I think that was around the time that Hiraku started targeting me."

Cloud fell silent for a moment, trying to compile all the facts in his head. "Trent was into martial arts as well?"

"He was trained by a monk growing up, then joined the Debks when he saw what a threat the Yuraks were."

"How did you two become close?" Cloud was asking a lot of questions, maybe **too** many. It was bringing up too many emotions inside Tifa. She tried her hardest to keep them hidden.

"He somehow latched himself onto me, refusing to be rejected. Trent had that way about him. Once his mind was set on something, he wasn't going to give up. That's probably why he was fighting to the end."

"I don't understand what you mean..."

"He promised to always defend me...and always watch out for me. I was between a rock and hard place, and he didn't flee from the battle. He died, when I should have." Tifa choked back tears, her eyes staying glued to the ground.

Cloud was silent for a few moments, and that made the situation even more tense than it had been before. After a few seconds, Cloud lightly set his hand on Tifa's head, running it down her long black hair one time. "And you blame yourself for Trent's death," he declared softly, his bright blue eyes never leaving her.

"Because it is my fault. He wouldn't have been there if it hadn't been for me."

"Tifa--"

"And don't try to convince me otherwise, because I know that's the truth," Tifa snapped. "If he didn't have some kind of obligation to me, he would still be alive."

"He was doing what he saw was right. Even if you tried to convince him to flee, he wouldn't have."

"I don't care about any of that!" Tifa screamed, her emotions getting the better of her. She rose to her feet quickly, heart pounding in fury. Why couldn't Cloud understand what she was feeling? She would try to get him to comprehend it all. "He's still dead. You know why? Because I had to join the Debks and have the Yuraks find me. He was killed because I was being hunted. It shouldn't have worked out that way!"

Cloud rose to his feet as well, his eyes locking with hers once again. "Tifa, calm down," he requested softly. Her rage was growing at an unhealthy rate. He was very concerned for her.

"No! You don't understand this Cloud! His death...it's all my fault. And I couldn't do anything to stop it. It's just like Nibelhiem!"

"What do you mean?"

Tifa was crying now. "If I hadn't led Sephiroth to the reactor, he never would have gone insane. He never would have burned down the town, and he never would have gone on to kill all those other people." _Including Aerith_, she added mentally. "I'm the one to blame. **For everything**."

Cloud grabbed her by the shoulders, not gentle at all, but very strong and firm. "Tifa, listen to me. You can't blame yourself for any of this. You didn't kill Trent. You didn't hurt all the other innocent people that Sephiroth killed."

Tifa shook her head, looking away from Cloud. "You're wrong." The young woman brought up a hand and grabbed onto Cloud's wrist, forcing him to release her. "None of that matters. I may as well have killed them. They're all dead now anyway. A consequence of my sin. The only way to redeem myself is to fight evil and give the innocent the chance to live."

Cloud grabbed his wrist, clearly surprised that Tifa had gotten out from his grasp so easily. "That's not logical, Tifa. You're pushing away everyone who loves you trying to find redemption, but you're never going to find that! You need to forgive yourself on your own. No course of action or lifestyle can provide that. You can keep fighting all you want, but it'll never be good enough for you. This search you're on...it's never going to end this way!"

That was all that Tifa could take. Cloud had taken it too far this time. "You don't know what I want," she hissed. "You think you're so knowledgeable. Maybe you have experience with your own pain. I know when you were lost last year, you made my life miserable. Do you know how hard it is to love someone when they're too depressed to even react to you?"

"Yes, I do know how that feels," Cloud responded softly, interrupting the young woman. Tifa froze. He meant her.

"H-how dare you? This is nothing like last year."

"How so?"

"This is about me, not you. You have no right to judge me and think you've felt all the feelings I've felt. Until you've seen what I've been through my entire life and the last year, you don't have the right to say anything."

"Teef--"

"You know what? I'll prove it to you. I'm going to go out and find my redemption. And I'm not coming home until I find it. There are still Yuraks out there. I'm going to get rid of all of them. Defeating Hiraku wasn't enough. This will be." She turned and started walking away from Cloud, not waiting for a response.

But Cloud wasn't going to let her go that easily. He came up behind her and grabbed her wrist so firmly that Tifa had to turn around to face her friend. Cloud was being extremely forceful with her, surprising Tifa. He had been very gentle lately, and it was rare not to see that side of him. "I'm not losing you again," he stated calmly, though he couldn't hide the slight tremble in his voice. He was scared for her.

Tifa could see his concern, but at that moment, she couldn't remember why she should care. He was her friend...However, her redemption was more important. Even if it came at a high cost, she would get it. Tifa raised her free hand and quickly curled it into a fist. She swung it right at Cloud's chin. The fist never touched his skin, for with his free hand, he caught hers and stopped it dead in its tracks. Before Tifa could move again, he released her other hand and set his on the back of her neck. He gave it a gentle squeeze, his index finger pressing against a pressure point. Tifa collapsed in front of him, unconscious. At least for the time being anyway.

_What have I done?_ Cloud wondered, his thoughts running through his head at a thousand miles per hour. He had no choice but to take action against Tifa; it was either him or her. Besides, now he had time to digest what was going on here. Hopefully Tifa would wake up and not be so erratic as well. Cloud sighed. He just hoped things would turn out all right here. Tifa was much more broken than he had originally thought. This could be the one problem he couldn't solve.

* * *

Author's note:

[Guys, I know this seems really random at the end and out of character, but it was the best way I could think of to write this story. If you didn't like that, then hopefully what's in chapter 11 will make up for it.]


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Awakening

"You WHAT?!?!" Barret hollered into the phone, his raspy voice even louder than usual as he rebuked Cloud.

"I had to knock Tifa out," Cloud responded calmly. "She was out of control. And about to leave again. I couldn't just let her go."

"And you couldn't just talk some sense into her, spiky?! She's too special to be treated like that!"

"Barret," Cloud sighed. "If there were any other options available, I would have gone with one of those. Trust me with this. I did what was necessary. Don't worry, I didn't hurt her. And besides, she'll be awake in a couple of minutes."

"If she tells me anything bad about you after this, I'll hunt you down myself spiky. You better know what you're doing."

"I do," Cloud stated simply. "Trust me, Barret. I love her just as much as you do."

Barret softened up. "That you do." Pause. "Bring her home and you better hope she doesn't say one negative thing about you or you's gonna walk away with this with more than a black eye. Got that?"

"I understand." Cloud hung up his cell phone. Another sigh escaped his lips as he turned to look at the sleeping girl. After thinking over the incident for a few minutes earlier, he had decided it would be wise to consult Barret on some of what happened. That didn't go extremely well, but that was to be expected. Barret loved Tifa as if she were a sister. However, he couldn't accept that she had to feel pain like a normal person did. If he could, Barret would take away all the pain and bear it himself. Life didn't work that way. If it did, Cloud would have done that a long time ago.

Tifa had a little bit of peacefulness showing in her facial expression, but that wasn't the only emotion that was there. Cloud could also see the hurt and stress from their conversation. _Poor Tifa_, he thought softly, suddenly having the urge to stroke her cheek. She had so much bottled up inside herself. Today she had reached her breaking point, probably because of the fact she told Cloud about Trent. Cloud felt a small amount of guilt for causing pain to rise up in her, but he knew it had to have been done.

The young man looked away, feeling awkward staring at his childhood friend as she lay on the ground. He knew he had caused this, and that didn't sit well in his stomach. It may have been necessary, but it still wasn't good. Nevertheless, Cloud had made a promise to himself; he wasn't going to leave this place until he won Tifa's heart. After what had just happened, he wasn't so sure he could do that. There was no chance he was going to give up, though. He had hope. Hope that she would be able to leave her past behind, just as he had learned to do after his geostigma was gone.

Tifa groaned softly, bring Cloud back to the moment at hand. _She must be waking up,_ he thought, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. Sure enough, Tifa rolled over onto her side, eyebrows furrowed slightly. Her bangs were in her face, making Cloud's heart skip a beat. Compassion suddenly swirled inside his heart and he knelt down without thought, brushing the girl's bangs out of her eyes.

Tifa's eyes opened abruptly at the movement, Cloud's hand still touching her forehead. Her brown eyes glance tiredly at the hand first, then flickered over to Cloud, who was staring at her with concern in his eyes. Tifa momentarily wondered why that was, but then she remembered what had happened. She had been acting so irregular that Cloud had to act the same with her. To stop her from going away, he had to take action against her. And surprisingly, Tifa wasn't upset at him for doing that.

"You're not going away now, are you?" Cloud asked softly, stroking Tifa's hair as he spoke.

"No," Tifa responded quietly.

Cloud nodded faintly, though that was his only reaction. His hand still rested on Tifa's hair, and his eyes never left hers. Tifa could see thoughts swirling behind those mysterious blue eyes. But at that moment, his thoughts weren't such a mystery. He was searching her eyes, trying to find a way to make sure she was alright. After a while, Cloud gave up, probably unable to find anything behind those brown eyes.

"Are you upset with me?" Cloud inquired softly, his blue eyes pleading that Tifa say no.

"No."

Cloud's eyes softened at the answer. He was clearly hoping for more than one word answers. But Tifa wasn't taking the bait. No matter what now, he was going to suspect that she was mad at him. Tifa registered all this in less than a second, and she let her guard down at Cloud's raw emotion. She didn't want to control him, not like this. She sat herself up, and unfortunately Cloud's hand moved away because of the movement.

"I saw her," Tifa said simply.

"Who?"

"Aerith."

Cloud's eyebrows shot up at Tifa's answer, the chocobo-haired man clearly not expecting this. "When?" he asked when he finally found his voice.

"When I was asleep," the girl put kindly. She wasn't going to mention that Cloud knocked her out. It was better to avoid that statement. And besides, it didn't make a difference now. Her heart sped up as she went on to describe her experience with her long lost friend.

"I hadn't realized what had happened at first," she started. "One second I saw nothing, and the next, I saw....myself. I could feel myself falling, but even more than that, I saw it happening. As if I were having an out of body experience."

"I know what you mean," Cloud replied patiently, letting Tifa know he was comprehending what she was saying.

"Right. Well, then everything around me turned black. I couldn't see you or anything else." Her voice softened as she continued. "I was afraid. I called out for you in the darkness, but you didn't come. Everything appeared to be so hopeless, and I gave up on it all despite the fact that I didn't know what was going on. I collapsed to my knees, and I started to sob."

"But then...I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up through the tears and I saw Aerith standing next to me. And I wasn't in the black place any more, I was in her flowerbed. Her eyes pierced mine, and for a little while we just stared at each other. The tears were still running down my face, but I didn't realize that at the time. And then I heard her speak.

"'_Let it go,'_ she had said. I started to weep at the words, since I knew exactly what she was talking about. I shook my head slightly and let my forehead rest against my knees and whimpered that I couldn't. I kept on repeating that over and over again.

"For a long time, I just sat there in tears. Eventually, when I looked back up, she was gone. But I was still in her flowerbed. It was then that I realized something. She may not have been there with me any more, but my surroundings were as beautiful as ever. And then I realized that the world is a lot like that." Tifa paused, compiling her thoughts. "Sometimes, even though you feel alone, if you take a step back and look around you'll realize just how beautiful the world is." A smile appeared on her lips as she stared up at Cloud.

Cloud returned her smile, his heart leaping out of his chest. "But not as beautiful as you," he murmured, running a hand over her hair.

Tifa's smile widened. "Is that all you want to do?" she asked quietly, referring to him stroking her hair. She didn't want anything big, but she loved Cloud so much, that she just wanted a little bit more. Just a small kiss, even on the forehead, would have been fine. Her soft brown eyes gazed up into Cloud's bright blue orbs. She hoped her eyes conveyed her feelings.

The blonde man chuckled softly, his cheeks reddening. Now this was the Cloud that Tifa knew from so long ago. It made her happy though, seeing that shyness in him. It was actually incredibly adorable. Cloud leaned down, his lips lightly connecting with Tifa's. He gave her a small kiss before backing away, the smile still on his lips. Tifa understood his hesitation; he knew she was still absorbing everything that was happening that day. And if anything extreme happened, even if it was good, it may have sent her into a world of mental chaos. She loved him for watching out for her.

"Thanks for not giving up on me," Tifa whispered. The girl lifted a hand and set it lightly on Cloud's shoulder.

"Well, you didn't give up on me," he stated simply, a small grin appearing on his lips. He sobered after a moment. "In fact, I'm where I am today because of you."

"Me?" Tifa asked, tears appearing in her eyes. She didn't know she had impacted Cloud that way.

"Of course," he replied, tenderness in his voice. "Without you, I would have given up. You kept me going when I had geostigma, without even knowing what I needed. You gave me space, but you supported me at the same time. Sometimes I wonder 'Who sent this beautiful angel to me, and what did I do to deserve her love?'"

Tifa stared up at him, in stunned silence. He couldn't be serious...but his eyes told her that he was. But if he meant all that...even if he meant a small part of it, Tifa was extremely flattered.

"And I promised myself, that I would love her and protect her the rest of my life," Cloud continued, holding Tifa's gaze. "My lovely angel." Tifa's tears grew in intensity, but she didn't allow them to leave her eyes. However, one did escape, trailing down her right cheek. Cloud wiped it away without hesitation, the blonde still leaning over her. Tifa blushed, turning her head away. She had no idea Cloud could be a passionate man; she had never seen this side of him before...

"Will you let me love you?" he requested softly. "Please, I'm not whole without you."

Tifa swallowed hard before returning his gaze. "I **need** you to love me," she stated. The girl leaned upward and let her lips connect with Cloud's in a kiss, that moment of bliss making her feel complete for the first time in a long time.

* * *

Cloud laid flat on his back, staring up at the starry sky. He wasn't too deep in thought, just reflecting on the change he saw in Tifa. She wasn't the girl he had known so long ago; she was better. He knew that this version of Tifa was going to be more hardwearing. And now that he could truly call her his, things were going to be different. He was going to love her and cherish her for as long as he lived. That was his purpose for living now.

For so long, he had lived so that he could reflect on his own misery and loss. But a year ago, things had changed. He learned to cherish what he had. When he had lost Tifa, he was so frantic all the time. Never before had he realized how much he loved her. He wasn't going to let her go any time soon.

"Thank you, Aerith," he whispered into the night air. "For everything you've done." The star he was staring at twinkled, and he knew his friend had heard him.

A faint noise entered his ears and he rolled over onto his side, seeing the girl of his dreams lying there next to him. She had turned in her sleep, and now she was facing towards him. Cloud smiled faintly as he reached over and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Tifa remained unaware of everything, apparently too deep in her slumber to realize Cloud's gentle presence. Cloud preferred it to be that way; he had no desire to awaken her from her slumber.

Rustling emitted from an area near-by and Cloud immediately forgot his thoughts and sat up, looking around cautiously. He and Tifa were alone...weren't they? That noise told him differently. The warrior rose to his feet slowly, scanning the area surrounding him. A bush nearby moved again. _Ah-ha, that's what it is._ Cloud stepped over Tifa and rushed over to the shrubbery, grabbing onto the person who caused the disturbance. He put a hand over his mouth and dragged him away, his heart pounding a hundred miles per hour. _You've bothered Tifa for the last time,_ he mentally told the reporter, his grip tightening slightly because of his annoyance.

A few moments later, Tifa rolled over in her sleep once again, a cool gust of wind starting to make her more aware of her surroundings. She moaned softly, unaccustomed to the chilly breeze. Her brown eyes flickered open when a familiar voice entered her ears. Cloud? No, he was lying right beside her. Still, just to be sure, Tifa rolled over.

He wasn't there.

Tifa sat up fully now, forgetting about the cool wind that had awoken her. Cloud? Where had he gone? The voice started up again, and Tifa listened closely to hear what was going on.

"....your name?" _Cloud's voice._

"Julio. Of the _Midgar Times_." A reporter.

"Do you know who I am?" _Cloud's voice is so firm,_ Tifa thought. What _in the world is going on?_ She turned her head and saw the outlines of two figures, one of them holding the other by the scruff of the neck. It was obvious who was who in this scenario.

"Y-You're the one who defeated Sephiroth when he came to Edge."

"And the one who defeated him the first time," Cloud added, scaring the man severely. "You know how tough Sephiroth is?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Very tough. He's killed a lot of people. But I was strong enough to kill him. You know, I haven't had the chance to do that to anyone for a while..."

Tifa could imagine the man shaking in his boots. _Cloud, take it easy, _she requested silently. The last thing they needed at that moment was for some reporter to leak word that Cloud threatened people who hadn't committed any real crimes. Besides, Tifa didn't really like seeing this side of Cloud. It may have been necessary to act in such a way, but it still wasn't something Tifa wanted to witness.

"...So I have a message for you know," Cloud continued. "If you ever try to get near Tifa again, I'll do to you what I did to Sephiroth. Understand?" The man nodded vigorously. "Tell all your other friends that the same applies to them. Nobody stalks her anymore. No exceptions. _Comprende_?" Cloud smirked, confident he had scared the man enough for one lifetime. Julio nodded again, so much so that Cloud wondered if his head wouldn't fall right off. "Now--" Cloud released the man and he fell to the ground. "Get lost."

Julio ran off into the night, wobbly at first because of the fear in his heart. Tifa watched him until he was out of sight, then turned to look at Cloud once again. He was still watching Julio, not satisfied quite yet. Tifa's lover wasn't going to stop watching until he was sure the threat was gone.

Tifa yawned softly, deciding then to just lie back down. Cloud would come back when he was ready to. She curled up on the cold ground, the wind blowing once again. The breeze chilled her, making the young woman shiver. Her brown eyes shut tightly as she tried to forget about the wind. It was hard to ignore, but thankfully sleep started to take her again. _It's still the middle of the night, after all,_ Tifa reflected sleepily. Her body started to become less tense as she relaxed, all her senses beginning to fade.

_He's gone, _Cloud thought confidently, unfolding his crossed arms. He was sure that Tifa wouldn't have any other reporters bothering her anymore. Tifa...he turned to look over at her, just then noticing that she looked cold. He silently walked over to her, careful not to wake the sleeping woman. Once he was back at the blanket, he pulled a blanket out of the extra picnic basket. He hadn't realized it would become so cold at night, and now he was glad he had thought ahead to bring a blanket. The sheet was laid carefully over Tifa, but it didn't seem good enough; she still appeared to be cold.

Cloud laid down beside her, gently setting a hand on her covered arm. Even through the blanket she felt cold. He started to stroke her arm, sympathetic eyes staying on the girl he loved. Gosh, she was beautiful when she slept...

Tifa, in her half-awake state turned over in her sleep, feeling warmth in the direction opposite of what she was facing. She instinctively moved closer to the warmth, her head coincidentally resting against Cloud's chest. The blonde haired man smiled at this, not objecting to the closeness. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer, remembering his vow to watch out for her and protect her. Even if it was from the cold, he was going to protect her. No matter what the circumstances were, he was always going to be her guardian.

Always.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Well, faithful readers, it's been fun, but this is the end of this story. Fear not though, you can expect more from me in the future. I'm currently working on another Cloti fic that will go much longer than this one. And I'm working on tuning up a story I worked on a long time ago. It's an antagonizing process, but that **Kingdom Hearts** fanfic should be posted relatively soon.

And of course, you can expect some random one-shots along the way. ;)

Alright, enjoy the epilogue!

* * *

Epilogue

_2 years later..._

The sound of rushing water abruptly ended when the kitchen faucet was turned off. The dishes were finally done, thank goodness. The business at 7th Heaven hadn't diminished in the past few years, and customers were never happy when things weren't perfect. They didn't understand just how much work it was to run a store, considering most of them were the lower-working class.

Tifa Lockhart sighed softly as she put the last glass away. It was already closing time; 9 PM. It seemed like an early time, but it was a Saturday night, and every Sunday morning Tifa and Cloud went to Aerith's church. Most of the time they just sat there to get away from it all. On rare occasions, they even heard Aerith speak. Or Zack, in Cloud's case. No matter what the case was, going to the church was always a breath of fresh air. Quite literally, it was a breath of fresh air.

The light reflected off Tifa's ring and she stopped what she was doing, taking a moment to stare at the diamond ring on her left hand. A smile appeared on her face as she recollected what had happened just a year ago at a new park in Edge.

"_Tifa?"_

"_Mm?" She turned to look at Cloud, who was sitting on a bright red bench beside her. He looked as if he felt awkward, which was a bit strange for the always-confident man. _

"_...."_

"_Cloud?"_

"_....."_

"_What is it?"_

"_...."_

"_Are you going to say anything at all?"_

"_............"_

"_Whatever it is, you can say it."_

"_It's just, I, um....."_

"_Yes, Cloud?" Tifa responded, sounding patient but ready to explode inside. _

_While Tifa was distracted, Cloud moved down in front of her, kneeling on one knee. A black box was in his hand as well, and inside..._

"_Will you marry me?"_

Tifa giggled at the memory, the figment of her imagination disappearing as she gazed at her ring again. That had been her reaction to the question as well. She had nearly given Cloud a heart attack; he had thought she was laughing at him, as if it were a ridiculous request. However, she was really laughing because of his adorable puppy face at that moment. But as soon as Tifa noticed the distress, she kissed him and answered with a "yes". They were married two months later.

Not taking her eyes off her ring, Tifa set her left hand on her enlarged stomach. At that moment, her expected child kicked her. The kick was nothing compared to what she'd felt when fighting crime, but it did take her breath away. She lost her breath partially because of the shock of being kicked from inside yourself and because of the awe she felt. _Pretty soon, I'll get to see you face to face,_ she thought giddily, her smile widening at the fact. It had been eight and half months since she had found out about her baby, so he was expected to come pretty soon. Tifa and Cloud had no idea if it was a she or a he, but they agreed just to refer to the baby as a "he" instead of an "it".

A more powerful kick impacted Tifa, actually causing her to gasp audibly. No, that wasn't a kick, it was much worse than that...she set a hand on the bar counter, trying to steady herself. Ultimately, though, she couldn't keep her balance. She groaned, falling to her knees. A loud thud reverberated throughout the large room from the landing. _Is it happening...?_ she wondered, clenching her hand into a fist. _This pain...._

A child ran in front of her, pulling her away from her thoughts. Marlene's blurry figure cleared up as Tifa blinked a few times. The pain was so evident in Tifa's eyes that it sent Marlene running.

"Cloud! Cloud!" the seven year old screamed, running toward the stairs.

Denzel suddenly appeared in Tifa's line of vision. In fact, he was close enough that Tifa could reach out and touch him. He had grown up in the past few years, and although he had grown in height, his cute eyes didn't change at all.

"You alright?!" he asked in concern, kneeling down in front of the pained young woman. Tifa didn't have the words to answer, so her eyes did the talking. No. No, she was not alright.

Tifa groaned again, pain clouding her senses. Without thought, she reached out and grabbed Denzel's hand, holding on tightly. The boy protested against the pain, trying to get across that Tifa was grabbing too tightly but failing. Tifa held on tightly, her brown eyes fuzzy as she tried to focus on the ground. Whatever was going on was not a good experience.

The pain stopped as abruptly as it had started, and Tifa fought to regain her senses before it happened again. "Huh? Tifa!"

The brown haired woman instinctively released Denzel's hand at the voice. Cloud. She looked up and immediately caught onto Cloud's bright blue eyes. They shone brightly with concern, even more than Cloud's body language itself screamed his worry.

"She nearly broke my hand!" Denzel cried out without thought, staring at his red, throbbing hand.

"Never hold the hand of a pregnant woman, Denzel." Yuffie came out of the shadows of another room and entered the main area, a smirk on her face.

"Yuffie! This is serious!" Cloud snapped.

"I'm being serious."

Cloud turned back to Tifa ignoring the ninja all together. "Is it..." Tifa nodded tentatively. "We gotta get you to the hospital. Yuffie, stay here with the kids."

"But...Cloud!" the kids protested together, their voices eventually splitting off as they continued protesting.

"You'll get to see Tifa later," he promised, unaffected from their whining. The blonde turned back to his wife. "Can you stand?"

"No," Tifa whimpered. Cloud's eyes softened at the response. "Can you help me?"

Working together, Cloud eventually helped Tifa to her feet. His arm was wrapped around her from behind, and hers was around him as well. Without a word, Cloud led her to the door. Actually, it was more like dragging her. Either way, they made it to the entrance of 7th Heaven fairly quickly. Neither of them wanted to have their child born in that bar.

_I feel...faint..._Tifa thought, fatigue suddenly overwhelming her. _This....this can't be right..._she had never felt such weakness before. The young woman leaned heavily into Cloud, actually forcing him to reset his footing to keep her upright.

"Taxi!" he cried, waving a free hand in the air. The first two vehicles drove right past them, but a kind third one stopped to assist them. Cloud hurried Tifa over to the cab, opening the door for her before gently helping her inside. Then he rushed to the other side of the car and sat himself down. "To the hospital. Quick!"

* * *

This next part is where it gets complicated. During the taxi ride to the hospital, Tifa had barely been conscious at all. And when she was, she was in great pain. As soon as Cloud got her into the hospital, the doctors had taken her away from him. When he demanded to know what was going on, they told him that they didn't know. But what they did know was that this wasn't the way giving birth was supposed to work. So they took Tifa into an operating room for an emergency C-section.

Cloud paced the hallway outside the operating room once again, that being about the hundredth time he had done so. He was so worried; the doctors still wouldn't tell him what was going on. So not only was he worried, but he was also angered. Couldn't these doctors let him know what was going on with his wife?!

"Cloud?" A hand touched his shoulder, and he turned to see who it was. Yuffie stood to his side, the kids about five feet away with Barret. "What's going on? You're not answering your phone."

The warrior instinctively touched his pocket, his phone being inside there. He hadn't even heard it ring. But then again, considering how distracted he was at that moment, he wasn't surprised. The only thing he was concerned about was Tifa, not his stupid phone ringing.

"Hey..."

"I don't know what's going on," Cloud stated, a bite to his voice. He took a deep breath, then continued. "They took Tifa in for an emergency C-section. The doctors won't tell me what's wrong."

Yuffie gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth. "Teef..."

A doctor suddenly exited the operating room, and Cloud approached him before the man had a chance of escape. "What's going on?" he asked, his voice demanding an answer. His tone was one that said "ignore-me-and-die."

"There were some complications. We're not sure what the problem was, but we have your wife on a drug that will make her stable again."

"Is she alright?"

Before the doctor could respond, Cloud saw two doctors leaving the operating room at that moment, one of them carrying a baby wrapped up in a blanket. The baby was sickly pale. That baby was** his** child.

"My...." Cloud trailed off, eyes wide as he saw the doctors carry off the baby.

"He's going to be taken to a special infirmary," the doctor started gently. "He's a bit premature, and he's having trouble breathing."

"Will he be alright?" Yuffie asked softly. Cloud turned to look at her; he had completely forgotten she was there.

"With the treatment we're going to give him, he has a better chance of survival," the doctor responded. "He has a respiratory infection because an early loss of amniotic fluid compromised his immune system."

The doors opened again, this time staying open as they rolled out a stretcher. Yuffie gave a sharp gasp when she it, and the site took away Cloud's breath. Tifa was lying there, looking frail and fragile.

"Tifa," Cloud strode past the doctor and to the side of the stretcher. "Tifa...."

"We had to give her an injection so she would be unconscious during the procedure," the doctor stated. "You're welcome to stay with her; other presences won't make her susceptible to deadly germs."

Cloud nodded, not deeply assessing what he had heard. As long as he could stay with Tifa, then he knew things would be alright. He wasn't going to allow anything to happen to her. Not now, not ever. The man wordlessly grabbed onto Tifa's limp hand and walked with her and the doctors to a room.

* * *

_Where am I?_

_What am I doing here?_

_What's going on? _

Tifa lay still on a cot, a million questions running through her head at that moment. She wanted answers, and she wanted them now. Mustering all the strength she could, she opened her eyes. The room wasn't empty as she had suspected; people were scattered throughout the area. However, none of them were looking at her. Yuffie, Barret and the kids sat by the window with Vincent standing right behind them. Cid was standing a few feet off, just staring at the ground.

To her right, another man sat. He had one hand on Tifa's and the other over his eyes. Although she couldn't see his entire face, she could still see the tenseness of his features. Her brown eyes flickered down to the hands. She curled hers around his and gave it a gentle squeeze. The silence in the room was so heavy that Tifa didn't dare speak anything audibly. Besides, she could convey her message without words anyway.

Cloud looked up at Tifa, his muscles relaxing a tad when he saw that she was awake. He moved his other hand on top of Tifa's so both were gently resting on hers. "You're awake," he stated softly, holding Tifa's gaze now.

As if on cue, everybody else turned around and stared at the two. The kids rushed forward, cries of joy escaping their lips. They had bad experiences in the past with family and friends being injured, so their excitement was understandable. Marlene jumped up on the bed right away, followed by Denzel, who was a bit more timid.

"I'm alright," Tifa reassured them, making eye contact with each of the children. Both looked a little frightened, but they smiled faintly at the sound of Tifa's voice. Perhaps they didn't believe her just yet; after all, she was still lying in a hospital bed. _But why am I here...? _

Suddenly she remembered.

"Our baby..." she started softly, changing her focus to Cloud. She became afraid at the grave facial expression he wore.

"He's being taken care of. He...has a respiratory infection....and he can't fight it off."

Tifa's heart broke. She had never met her child, yet she still felt this unfathomable love for him. _My child....how could this happen?_

The door suddenly opened, the hatches creaking slightly as a doctor entered the room. All eyes shifted to him and the air held an awkward and heavy silence. What news could this doctor possibly bring them? Was it good news or bad news? What about her baby? Was he alright?

A soft cry suddenly echoed through the room. Tifa gasped as the doctor turned around; he had a baby in his arms. A little baby boy, wrapped up in a blue blanket. Not just any baby boy; it was **her** baby boy.

"My child," Tifa breathed.

The doctor chuckled. "Would you like to hold your baby?" Tifa nodded wordlessly. She anxiously watched as the man came over and gently laid the baby in her arms. He was so tiny, so vulnerable...so loved. Did he know what he meant to her? Did he know just how precious he was?

"It's a miracle," the doctor was saying. "We gave him a small dose of medicine and he's already recovering. If we send home some antibiotics with you and you give them to him once a day, he'll beat this infection in no time."

_A miracle. When was the last time I believed in miracles? _Tifa thought back, lost in her memories as she gazed at her precious, irreplaceable child.

"_It's a miracle that you survived," the kind nurse said, tears filling her eyes. "You shouldn't have survived that attack, but you've had a miraculous recovery." _This was back at the hospital months ago, when Tifa had first been there for the injuries of a Yurak ambush. That was the day that she had nearly run into Cloud outside the hospital.

At the time, Tifa had nearly laughed at the idea. She had wanted to tell that nurse that miracles simply didn't exist. If they did, maybe her father would have gotten his miracle. Or Aerith. But no, they had both died. There were no resurrections to bring them back to life; they stayed dead. Was that reflecting the impossibility that miracles existed?

That was how Tifa had thought before, but now she knew better. Aerith had gotten her miracle, and that was Zack. He loved her and protected her while she was alive. Now they were together in the lifestream, having their "Happy Ever After." Although Tifa didn't know what her father's specific miracle was in his life, Tifa guessed it was her mother. Though she had never met her, Tifa knew that her father loved her. They were together now too, probably contently watching over their daughter.

Not only that, but Tifa had gotten her miracle. Or miracles. She had rediscovered herself; she had found joy in the fact that her family and friends were happy despite the fact that they were no longer with her. However, her greatest miracle was Cloud. He had helped mold her into the person that she was today. On their wedding day, he promised to always love her, cherish her, and be her guardian angel. Tifa promised the same for him, and it was then she knew that miracles existed. Looking back through her life, there was no way she and Cloud should have been together. But they were. And they always would be. Not just today, not just tomorrow. Forever and always.

"What're you going to name him?" Yuffie asked, breaking through Tifa's thoughts. Tifa pondered the question. She wanted a name of importance; she wanted it to mean something. At that moment, she knew exactly what she would name him.

"Mathew." _God's gift._


End file.
